Long Time No See
by PhinabellaDirectioner
Summary: "Maybe not before, or now, but the time will come when love will, on its own, come into their lives." What if something happened in your life that will change it forever? Is there someone who will help you? Will that person make you happy or sad? Isabella and Phineas are here to help you finding out the answers. But I tell you... YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. CHAPTER 7 IS OUT!
1. Prologue

_**What's up, my readers and friends?**_

_**I'm sorry if I haven't update TCLF for a while. Having a hectic sched makes me sooo tired then I have my exams next week! It's getting in my nerves! *sighs* I hate my life.**_

_**Enough with the rambling about my personal life. Time to get serious a little bit.**_

_**I'm here to give you another story though I planned that I'll publish this in Feb. But a song changed my mind so if you want, thank that sonmg and the singers (It is the same song I will use as a soundtrack of this story. You will know it when you read Chapter 1.) I am about to give another Phinabella story that will make you happy, sad, and cry. In a good way, I hope. So, if you're excited to see it then... Let's get started!**_

_**(Disclaimer: I'm tired saying this but I have no choice. Oh well. I do own nothing, guys.)**_

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><p><em><strong>"Prologue"<strong>_

Stop right here and listen _very_ carefully.

If you're reading this story, then I'm advising you to stop reading and try to read something else. Or do something that will make you distracted from reading this story. I'm sure that you're thinking I'm just messing up with you.

_But you're wrong. _

I just don't want to share this story. I don't want to give you the reason to be sad. Why? Because this story contains tragic moments but don't worry, there is also some happy moments in my life.

Nevertheless, I still don't want to share it.

And if you're smart enough, don't continue reading.

* * *

><p>Don't. Read. More.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>I SAID, DON'T READ!<strong>

* * *

><p>Good. Now I know I can trust you.<p>

You're curious. You're brave. And you're not afraid to hide a secret or to experience sadness. But let's get something straight: if, despite my warning, you insist on reading this story, you can't hold me responsible for the consequences. No, it won't blow up in your face. Or bite your head off. Or tear you limb from limb. It probably won't injure you at all.

So... let me introduce myself.

I'm Isabella. Isabella Garcia-Shapiro.

And this is my story.

You can read it now.

_But remember... I warned you._

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><p><strong><em>So, let's get started with Chapter 1!<em>**


	2. Chapter 1: Unexpected

_**"Chapter 1 - Unexpected"**_

_**"Isa! Wake up, it's already morning!" **_

I hear my mom shouting while I open my eyes. I looked at my digital watch as I removed my blanket out of me. It's almost seven o'clock.

Wait a minute.

"Seven o'clock?! I'M GETTING LATE!" I shout and I take all of my clothes with me frantically as I run to the bathroom. I really try to rush myself in taking a bath but I find myself getting slipped. After wearing my pink and white chequered blouse and my purple skirt, I wear my white sandals and snatch all of my books and my satchel from the night stand.

But before I go downstairs, I glance at my picture frame. I smile at the picture of me hugging my childhood best friend and long time crush, Phineas Flynn. I put down all of my things and I hold the picture. I look at his dark blue eyes.

"It's been a while, huh Phin?" I say to the picture. I wait for a moment before I continue. "It's been what, four years? Four years since you left me because you went to New York to study there and you never make a communication between us.

"But still... my feelings for you...

"Never faded..." I trail off. My tears are falling out of my eyes.

"ISA!" I hear my mom again. I put down the picture on my table, snatch all of my things, and rush downstairs.

"Hi Mom, good morning!" I greet my Mom while I'm hoping in my mind she doesn't notice my reddish eyes.

"Oh, there you are Isabella." She says as she serves my breakfast. "What are you doing? Don't you turn your alarm clock on?"

I scratch my ear, the same thing Phineas always do. "I... kinda..."

Crap. I didn't hear the alarm clock. _Again._

"That's okay," Mom tell me in a cheerful way, like she's reading my thoughts earlier. "Maybe you can't really hear it beeping it all over."

I sigh and I eat my bread and butter toast. Mom looks at me.

"Lemme guess, you missed him... right?" She asks. I nod in response. "Isa, can't you just, forget him?"

I look at my plate. "Mom, it is not easy to forget the person you love."

"I know that but listen, Isabella, it's been four years since he moved to New York... maybe he moved on in his life. You need to move on in life, too." She says.

I continue eating in silence then I glance at my watch. I widen my eyes. "Uh oh..."

"What is it?"

"It's 7:30! Gotta go, Mom!" I said as I kiss her cheek.

"Okay Isa, be careful!"

I run out of my house, still munching my toast and carrying all of my things for school. After I fix my things, I ride my bike. I pass at the Flynn-Fletcher's house. Phineas's parents are still living there. Candace, Phin's older sister, moved out with her husband, Jeremy. Meanwhile Ferb, Phin's step-brother, went to London to study there for his high school life. I heard too that he'll gonna study there for college. I wonder when Phin will return here in Danville.

No, _"when"_ isn't the main question...

I wonder _if_ he will return...

* * *

><p>I arrive here in DHSA ten minutes before the school ceremony. I am about to peek the master list when—<p>

"Isabella!" I turn my head back. It's my friend and my fellow troop member of Fireside Girls, Gretchen.

"Hey Gretch." I greet her while she is fixing her things inside her bag.

"Isabella, I have something to say to you!" She says excitedly.

My eyebrow goes up. "What is it?"

"WE'RE ON THE SAME CLASSROOM!" She exclaims.

"SHH!" I scold her and gesturing not to make any noise. DHSA is one of the most exclusive schools here in Danville and it keeps its reputation to have students with good manners, right conduct and discipline. Since we are the senior students, we should be the role models for the students in the lower levels.

"Sorry." She says while blushing because of embarrassment, then lowers her voice. "We're classmates! Isn't that great?"

"I know, right? Who are our other classmates?"

"Well... all of the Fireside Girls are in our class, Baljeet, Buford, Django, Irving..." She trails off.

"But?" I continue for her.

"But?" She asks me the same question that I gave for her.

"Well, you're trailing off. There is a bad news, isn't it?"

"There is." She says sadly. "Actually, it is a bad news for _you_."

"What is it?"

She sighs and looks at me. "Jandro is with us."

"WHAT?!" Now it's my turn to shout, then I lower my voice. "Are you serious?"

"I want to say no but... I'm serious." She replies and I moan. Jandro is one of the worst students and bullies in DHSA, yet he is a smart student. How worse he is, you ask? Well... He is worse than Buford— Wait, let me correct that:

HE IS FAR WORSE THAN BUFORD. And you know who his favorite target is?

_ME. _

I sigh as I put the sadness on my face. "Oh, I hope he would stop bullying at me."

"I hope that too." Gretchen says.

Long pause.

"Do we have new classmates?" I ask.

"Hmm... I haven't seen the full list but I heard that we have a new classmate." She replies.

"Boy or girl?"

"Boy."

"What is his name?"

"I don't know, but he's very good in academics and sports." She tells me. My face goes sad. "You missed Phineas, don't you?"

"Yeah." I admit. "He's very good at sports and academics, too."

"Isabella..." She says. "Why can't you forget him?"

"Because... It's very hard to forget someone who gave you so much to remember."

She sighs and pats my shoulder in comfort. "You know, let's go. I don't wanna start my record by getting late."

I smile and we run up to our room. I try to remove my sadness because the fact that Jandro would be my classmate for this year still haunts me. My brain reminisces what happened on the past years of my high school life with him but something catches my attention, causing me to stop running and stop thinking about my worst days of my high school life.

"Isabella?" Gretchen calls me. I take a glance at the window and I see the school bus for the kindergarteners, honking. Many pupils are getting out in there and running into the building.

"Isabella!" I turn my attention at Gretchen, who is panting by the way. "What... are you... waiting... for...?"

"You go first. I have something to do." I tell her.

She sighs while wiping her sweat with her handkerchief. "Suit yourself. The room number is 111."

"Okay, thanks for telling." I say and she runs off.

I turn my head to the window. I'm feeling that a song is playing inside my head while I'm staring outside, then it continued to play. I hear the honk of the bus again and I start to recall the day the day me and my best friend met...

* * *

><p><em>"Hurry up Isa, the school bus is here!" Mom says.<em>

_"Mom, I don't want to go to school." I tell her while slumping on my bed._

_"Why? Last night, you're very excited then all of the sudden, you don't want to go?" She asks._

_"I have this nightmare... as I went to school; I slipped on a banana peel and fell on the mud. Then all of my school mates laughed at me. I cried and the laughter became louder and louder... I don't want that to happen again..."_

_"Oh come on, Isabella! School is not bad as you think." She tries to comfort me._

_"Can you come with me?" I ask._

_"I want to, but..." She sighs. "Isabella, I know it's very hard to adjust since we just moved here. But I can assure you that this day, would be the best day ever for you. So please, go to school. Please, do it for me."_

_I sigh in defeat. "Alrighty then, I'm gonna go."_

_Mom smiles and I couldn't help but to smile. After I change my PJ's, I eat my favourite bread and butter toast and Mom walks towards me._

_"Tell me if it's okay to you, okay Isa?" She tells me as she combs my hair then I hear the honk of the school bus. I nod in response then I go outside._

_As I enter the school bus, someone throw a water balloon at me. I'm soaked with cold water and the bus fills with laughter from the other kids._

_"AHAHAHAHAHA!"_

_"Did you see her face?"_

_"It's soooo funny!"_

_"I know, right?"_

_(A/N: Oh, before I almost forgot about it, if you want to know what that song Isabella is talking about earlier, then look it up in YouTube. Here's the link: /watch?v=w1oM3kQpXRo.)_

_As my eyes burst out some tears, the bus stops. Maybe there is a pupil going in here._

_"What happened here?" It looks like a boy's voice. I turn my head back to see the boy. He's wearing a blue cargo shorts, an orange shirt with white stripes, and blue tiny sneakers. But the thing he had that caught my attention is his triangular-shaped head._

**_All I knew this morning when I woke,  
>Is I know something now, know something now I didn't before,<br>And all I've seen since 18 hours ago is blue eyes and freckles and your smile,_**

_He smiles at me but I look away from him. I don't want him to see me like this. I don't want to make a bad impression at him._

**_In the back of my mind making me feel like,  
>I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,<br>I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,_**

_"Phineas! You really missed the fun!" I hear from the front of the bus. "You should see her face!"_

_"Fun? What fun are you talking about? That girl is crying!" He exclaims. I blink my eyes._

_"That's the funniest part!"_

_"It's not funny, Buford." He says. "You should say sorry at her."_

_"There is no way I'm gonna say sorry at that girl." The Buford boy says._

_"Hmm... okay, suit yourself. Who wants some Tuff Gum?" He yells as he raises a pack of chewing gum. Buford rushes up to him._

**_I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,  
>I just want to know you, know you, know you,<em>**

_"OKAY, OKAY! I'LL SAY SORRY, JUST GIVE ME THAT GUM!" He says. Wow, this boy really love that gum._

_"Say sorry, in a sincerely way and if she accept you apology, I'll give you this." The boy instructs him. Buford walks towards me and he looks at me._

**_Cause all I know is we said hello,  
>And your eyes look like coming home,<br>All I know is a simple name, and everything has changed,_**

**_All I know is you held the door,  
>You'll be mine and I'll be yours,<br>All I know since yesterday is everything has changed,_**

_"Um... I... am... sorry..." He says._

_I try to smile. "It's okay."_

_"Yes! Now, gimme that!" He snatches the pack from the boy's hand and he munches all the gums. _

**_And all my walls still stood tall painted blue,  
>But I'll take them down, take them down and open up the door for you,<em>**

_The boy walks towards me and he holds my hand. "Are you okay?"_

_I nod in response then he wipes my tears out of my face. As we walk to our seats, he smiles and he helps me to dry up. But still, I didn't talk or say anything. I look at our hands. He squeezes my hand and suddenly, I felt warm though I'm shivering earlier from the water._

**_And all I feel in my stomach is butterflies the beautiful kind,  
>Making up for lost time, taking flight, making me feel like,<em>**

_Ten minutes before we arrive at the school, I start to talk with him. "Why did you help me earlier? Why you didn't laugh at me like the other kids did?" _

**_I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,  
>I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,<br>I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,  
>I just want to know you, know you, know you,<em>**

_He didn't remove his hand at mine's. "It's not funny. I would laugh if nobody was harmed... but you're crying. You know, true happiness cannot be found in the sadness of a person. Sometimes, you can see it in the happiness at one of your important persons in your life. Am I right?"_

_He's right. I'm very happy when the persons I love are also happy, but I didn't answer back._

**_Cause all I know is we said hello,  
>And your eyes look like coming home,<br>All I know is a simple name, and everything has changed,_**

_"Hey, at what class you are?" He asks and I'm feeling there is something in my stomach keeping me to be nervous._

_ "J-Joey." I reply. (A/N: In their school, the sections were named by the baby names of the animals.)_

_"Joey? That's my class, too!" He exclaims._

_"R-really?" I stammer. "T-that's great!" _

**_All I know is you held the door,  
>You'll be mine and I'll be yours,<br>All I know since yesterday is everything has changed,_**

_"I know, right? We could play, talk about our hobbies! We could even be friends!"_

_I blink my eyes. "F-fr-friend? Me?"_

_"Yeah!"_

_I blush a bit. I never had a friend before. I don't know what to do! And... hey!_

**_Come back and tell me why,_**

**_I'm feeling like I've missed you all this time,_**

**_And meet me there tonight,_**

**_And let me know that it's not all in my mind,_**

_ "Why do you want to be your friend? Maybe... you want to bully me?" I ask him._

_"What?!" He says, seemingly surprised._

_"Don't deny it! In the start, you want to be friends with me to build my trust for you and after you gave me enough happiness, you'll make me cry in the end. You will make my life miserable too, like that boy earlier! Am I right?"_

_"N-no!" He says. "Of course not! I want to be friends with you but not because of that!"_

_"Then why? You don't even know my name!" _

_"That's not a problem. Introduce yourself."_

**_I just want to know you better, know you better, know you better now,  
>I just want to know you, know you, know you,<em>**

_Suddenly, I get nervous. Usually, Mom was making the intro for me. This is the first time that I will introduce myself to someone I barely know. _

_I hesitantly offer my hand. "My... name..."_

_I'm afraid. What if he didn't like me?_

_ "Don't be afraid." He says, like he's reading my thoughts. "I won't hurt you."_

_I smile in relief. "The name is Isabella."_

_His smile widens. "You got a nice name, Isabella."_

**_Cause all I know is we said hello,  
>And your eyes look like coming home,<br>All I know is a simple name, and everything has changed,_**

_I blush deep. "Thanks. Anyway, what is your name?"_

_"My name is Phineas."_

_"What?"_

_"Phineas."_

_"Phine-what again?"_

_He laughs. "You can't pronounce my name?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Hmm..." He places his finger on his chin. "I know! You can call me 'Phin'."_

_"Phin... I like that."_

**_All I know is you held the door,  
>You'll be mine and I'll be yours,<br>All I know since yesterday is everything has changed,_**

_He smiles and I smile, too. I look at my hand. Phin didn't let go my hand the whole time. As we go to the classroom, we're still holding each other's hands. But before we enter, he stops me._

**_All I know is we said hello,  
>So dust off your highest hopes,<br>All I know is pouring rain,  
>And everything has changed,<em>**

_"What is it, Phin?" I ask._

_"I forgot to say this earlier. If you're thinking that I want to be your friend because I want to bully you then don't worry. I'm not a bully, like Buford." He says._

_"How can I assure that?" I ask._

_"I will protect you. I'm gonna protect you from the bullies. Is that okay with you?"_

_I give my nod. "Yes."_

_"Great!" He shouts. I cover his mouth very fast to lessen the noise and my heart starts to race. His face goes red as I touch his lips. _

_"Sorry." I say while I take back my hand. _

_"T-th-that's okay. Let's go?" He asks and I nod. As we enter the room, these questions rob in my head:_

_What's wrong with me? I think. Why is my heart beating like this? And why is Phin blushing?_

**_All I know is a new found grace,  
>All my days, I'll know your face,<br>All I know since yesterday..._**

_On that moment, I didn't get the answers. But I realized that Mom is right, that..._

**_...Is everything has changed..._**

_…this day would be my best day ever._

* * *

><p>My tears are still flowing on my cheeks. It was the most memorable and the greatest day of my life. But...<p>

_"I will protect you."_

That line is still ringing on my mind yet keeping me sad.

"KRIIIING!" The bell rings. At first, I didn't realize that...

"Oh shoot! I'm late!" I shout and I run up to my room.

* * *

><p>I knock the door and the class shifts their attention at me. "Sir, I am very sorry that I'm late! May I come in?"<p>

My teacher sighs. "Ms. Garcia-Shapiro, since it's the first day of class, I'll forgive you."

I smile in relief. "Thank you, sir."

"But..." He continues. "If you get late again, I will not tolerate it again. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"You may come in." He gestures me to get inside of the room and I enter. He points at my assigned seat. "Please take you seat there."

I walk towards to an empty seat, near at the window. I glance to my left side. There's nobody seated. _Maybe it's for the new student._

"Okay! Now, let's get back to the orient-"

A knock on the door interrupts our teacher and I take a glare at the door. It was our principal.

"Excuse me sir, sorry to interrupt and make some disturbance but I have the new student here." He informs. The classroom fills with murmurs of the students.

"Class, be quiet. I'll just talk with the student. Just don't make any trouble here." Our teacher tells us as he closes the door and leaves the classroom.

I look at the window then I felt someone poked my arm. I look back. It was Gretchen.

"Have you seen the new student? Do you have any idea who he is?" I ask.

"Still, I didn't see him yet or I don't have an idea." She replies.

I sigh. "I wonder who he is..."

"Why you got curious of that student? Did you already know him?"

"Why would I ask you about it if I knew him?" I ask her, trying to put sarcasm in my voice. Suddenly, the door opens and the whole class goes silent again.

"Okay, class! I'm gonna introduce the newbie!" Our teacher exclaims as he goes to the table. I look at the window as he tells about the new student.

"He used to be here in Danville years ago. Also, he is the best student on his previous school and he's very good in soccer and volleyball."And then again, a knock interrupts him. "Oh, young lad, you can come in."He goes beside on our teacher. I couldn't see his face because of his hood. "You may introduce yourself."

He raises his head a little bit and turns it at my direction. I blink in confusion and he faces the whole class. He removes his hood and I put my shocked face. _It cannot be._ I slap my cheeks lightly. _I'm just imagining things,_ _I'm _just_ imagining things._ I close my eyes and when I open it widely, he's still there.

"Hi, I'm Phineas Flynn. It's very nice to meet you." My best friend says.

_Phin is back._

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><p><strong><em>How was it? Little good? Sad? Dramatic?<em>**

**_Well, I'm not certain of your reactions so start reviewing! Or PM me if you want!_**

**_So, my job is done here. _**

**_(PhinabellaDirectioner is out! *echoes* Out... out... out...)_**


	3. Chapter 2: How Is Your Life Doing?

_**Hiii. **_

_**So, I have good news and bad news. What do you want to hear first? The good one? Or the bad one? Eenie minie... nah, I'm just messing up. Here I go.**_

_**BAD NEWS: MY STORY "THAT CHRISTMAS LOVE FEELING" WILL NOT BE CONTINUED ANYMORE. Sorry for the news but I have tons and tons and tons of school work waiting for me. This is the downside of being an graduating student. Lots of work and activities like the JS Prom, retreat, two more school tests, and the National Achievement Test. So much hard work. So, I'm very, very, very sorry. Maybe I could make it up to you sometime.**_

_**GOOD NEWS: Do you want to hear it? Well, here it is!**_

_**I'LL GIVE YOU THE NEXT CHAPTER OF LONG TIME NO SEE!**_

_**(Disclaimer: I don't own P&F, blah, blah, blah.)**_

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><p><em>(AN: Before we continue the story, if you want some melody while reading this, then I have a recommendation. Just go to YouTube and search: /watch?v=7arSQHocy1k. If you don't want to play it, that's fine. Okay, back to the story!)_

**_Chapter 2: How Is Your Life Doing?_**

_**"Hi, I'm Phineas Flynn. It's very nice to meet you." My best friend greets. The class remains silent until the girls raise their questions and comments about him.**_

"Phineas, is... that... you...?" Ginger asks.

"You really changed!" Gretchen exclaims.

"You're the best student in your school?!" Adyson says. "That's—"

"SUPERB!" Baljeet and Irving shouted.

"Um, thanks?" He just said. I glanced at him. He is scratching his ear and blushing. I smile and I'm feeling like I'm swooning._ Ah... How cute and adorable he is._

Gretchen is right. He really changed. He got a little taller and instead of shirt and cargo shorts, he is wearing a red hood jacket with an orange and white polo underneath it and dark blue pants. But... his face never changed. His gleaming eyes. His lively aura on him. And that smile of his... I felt... you know... up to now I can't describe OR explain this feeling I have when I see his smile.

Speaking of it, he glares at me and he gives me a big smile. I try not to show my blush on my face and I look away from him. Anyway, our classmates are still giving some questions to him but Phineas can't answer the questions really quick, instead he scratches his head.

"Where is McGee? Is he doing alright?" Buford asks.

"Why you came back all of the sudden, Phineas?" Baljeet asks.

"Have you done any HUGE projects?" Irving asks while he is holding a notepad.

"Uh, guys? Can you ask not in chorus?" He requests but the class didn't hear his voice.

"QUIET!" Our teacher shouts. The whole class goes silent immediately. Even Phin closes his mouth shut very tight. "You can ask your questions to Mr. Flynn after class. Anyway..." He faces Phineas. "I'm Ross Adams and I will be your class adviser for this school year. I'm glad to meet you Mr. Flynn."'

"Me too, Sir Ross." Phin says.

"Okay. So, Mr. Flynn, I have made a seat plan..." Sir Ross snatches a paper from his table. "You should be... seated... with..."

My heart races while my eyes widens in realization. The only empty seats are the seat beside Baljeet and—

"Got it, you should be seated right next to Ms. Garcia-Shapiro." Sir Ross tells him.

WHAT?! OH MY!

I'm feeling my whole body goes numb and my heart is starting to beat faster than before.

_Is this fate?! Destiny?!_

As he walks towards to his seat, I breathe deeply and I start to think some crazy thoughts. _What if his opinion of me changed in the past years? What if, if now, he doesn't treat me as his friend?_

While he's taking his seat, I try not to be near at him. I try to keep my eyes away from his eyes. I need to keep distance from him. _Why, you ask?_

Because I'm afraid to meet the new Phineas Flynn.

_But... This sweet distance feels so close, yet so far...!_

I glance at my surroundings. I could tell even without scanning the whole room that our friends were trying hard not to laugh and giggle.

_Having Phineas right next to me made the atmosphere and the scenery— No, it makes the whole world change. And it definitely makes me happy. But..._

"So! Let's continue, shall we?" Sir Ross tells us.

_What if my stomach rumbles during class or something?_

I shake all my thoughts as I drift to Phineas-land again...

* * *

><p>So far, I didn't talk to him. He keeps giving me his smiles but I smile back on his 8th smile (yeah, yeah, I really count the times). He gives a wide smile and our hands bump. I close my eyes and I try to breathe.<p>

_Please,_ _stop that. Or else I will melt if you keep on doing that._

Sir Ross is still blabbering about the grading system and the other school stuff. As I glance again at Phineas, he is smiling while listening. I smile in delight. _He is very optimistic until now. _Then I look back at Sir Ross, my smile is still plastered on my face. This will flow in a good way

But suddenly...

My chest starts to ache. I grasp my pencil on my hand to ignore the pain that I'm having and I start to palpitate.

"Ms. Garcia-Shapiro, is there any problem?" I hear Sir Ross's voice. I can't say a word. Did I...

_Uh. Oh. I didn't take my medicines._

"Isabella, are you okay?" Phin asks me. I cannot tell to him that secret. Not now. I don't want him to worry because of me.

I manage to nod and I smile. "Are you sure?" He asks again and I nod again. He turns his attention to Sir Ross. "Sir, she's okay."

"Is that so, Mr. Flynn? Thanks for telling me." He says. "Oh, Ms. Garcia-Shapiro, do you mind if you can get that box near at your chair?"

Uh oh.

Phin raises his hand. "I'll just get it, sir."

"No." I stand up. I feel that my body is starting to ache and go numb. I try to speak but there is no voice went out but I try the second time and my voice goes low. "I'll get it."

"Are you sure?" Phin asks worriedly.

"Yeah, don't worry." I reply. I start to walk towards to the box. Gretchen glances at me and mouths: '_Are you really okay?' _I want to say no because my chest aches again but I don't want to make her worry.

_'Yeah, I'm fine.' _I mouth back.

I already get the box and I start to feel the dizzy spell. I see some blurry figures and I can't help blinking hard. As I put down the box, I smile to Sir Ross so he couldn't suspect a thing on me.

"Thank you, Ms. Garcia-Shapiro." He says then I faced the whole class while I make my way back to my seat. As I closed my eyes, I feel like I'm falling down.

I black out.

* * *

><p>I wake up because of the irritating light and I hear a voice. It's the nurse— Wait, not only one. Two.<p>

"Is she okay?" _It's Phin! Did he help me when I blacked out?_

"Yes, she's fine. Don't worry." The nurse tells him.

"Why did she black out? Is she sick?" Oh no. Nurse knows it. Oh, I hope she wouldn't tell the truth...

"Um..." _Don't tell the truth. Don't tell it to him._ "...she doesn't have any problems. But still, she needs to rest." She replies. I exhale in relief.

Phineas looks at me and his eyes widens. "Isabella! Are you alright?"

I smile in response. He breathes out in relief as he gets the message. "Thank goodness and you're fine." He says.

"Mr. Flynn, I need to go downstairs to check a middle school student. Could you please take care of Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro while I'm gone?" She asks.

"I could handle her." Phin replies.

"Thank you Mr. Flynn, but don't make her stressed while I'm gone." She instructs him and he nods in response.

While nurse goes out of the clinic, a long pause fills the whole clinic. As I try to stand up, my chest aches again. But it is not painful than before. He stops me from standing up.

"Just lie down there." He insists. I couldn't take an argument in this condition so I follow him.

Long pause again.

"Sorry for making you worried." I apologize.

"Nah, it's okay. We're best friends." He replies.

My smile widens a bit but in instant, it fades. "You're fooling me, Phineas Flynn." I say flatly.

"What? I'm not."

"Oh, really?" I started to feel the anger and sadness in my heart. "You never send me a letter. You never called me, like you promised on that day. And then, you're just gonna go back here like everything never changed and you're gonna say that I'm still your best friend? Huh, don't make me a fool Phineas. Maybe you don't care about me. Maybe you don't care what would happen to me. Maybe you don't even care that I blacked out in the classroom! _Maybe you don't even care that one day, my life would be taken unexpectedly!_"

He goes silent and I realized what I've said. I think my words cut deep for him.

"P-Ph-Phineas, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't say that! I know that you're busy in your school works—"

He interrupts me by pinching my nose lightly. "OW! STOP THAT!" I cry.

He laughs loudly, loudly enough to fill the whole room with laughter and I smile. "I know... and I'm sorry."

"No, I should be the one to say that."

"_I_ should be the one." He tells me. "Look, I'm so sorry that I didn't leave you a call or I didn't write you a letter, like what I've promised. I know that I said goodbye to you and I broke my promises to you but, it doesn't mean that I stopped worrying about you. I spent almost every day of my life in New York worrying about you. I'm really sorry Isabella. I hope you could forgive me."

What's this? I know that I'm angry at him but I could feel my mind telling me to forgive him.

No, not my mind.

_My heart._

We go silent for a couple of minutes but I break the tingling silence.

"I synchórese ídi." _(I already forgave you.)_

He smiles. _Looks like he still understands the language._ "Sas efcharistó." _(Thank you.)_

I smile. I feel like I'm free from the cage that my mind and heart made earlier. "Parakaló." _(You're welcome.)_

"Wanna go back?" I ask him.

"Of course but are you alright?"

"Yep."

"Alrighty then."

When I stand up, I stumble but he manages to catch me.

"Are you _really_ sure that you're fine?" He asks me again. I pause and I look at him.

"Perfectly fine." And we make our way back to the classroom.

_I can't believe that I'm lying to my best friend._

_To my very thing I'm living for..._

* * *

><p>It's really good to be back. I mentally sigh in delight. I really miss this place. Danville, my family, the backyard, and my friends. Especially for one person in particular...<p>

As I glance at my best friend, I feel worried. I feel a little anxious when I saw her falling on her knees in the classroom. Speaking of it...

"Isabella, why did you black out earlier? Are you feeling sick?" I ask.

She faces me and smiles. "Maybe I'm really stressed out last night. I can't sleep so I did some tiring stuffs for me to fell asleep. But... I think it... affects me now."

"Oh, okay."_Continue it, Phin. Just don't maintain the cold air!_

"C-Come to think of it," I say while stammering, "it's been what, four years?"

"Yeah." She pauses for a while and she crosses her arms, making me stop from walking and I look at her eyes.

"What's wrong, Isabella?"

"I already forgot to ask earlier, why did you return?"

Oh man, I can't tell her why yet! What I'm gonna do with this?

"Um..." _Don't scratch your ear,_ _don't scratch your ear!_

_Can you please, shut your thoughts up!_ I scold myself in my mind.

"...I just really want to graduate here." She gives me a glare and I raise my hands in defence. "That's all, really! I didn't say that I will never come back. Don't you want me to be here?"

"I want to, but..." She looks at me worriedly but the worried face suddenly changes into a face with a smile. "You're changing the topic, Phineas Flynn."

I chuckle. "Sorry."

I'm feeling bad lying to her. I mean, I never told her a lie. She is my best friend. My very first best friend. I remember the first rule—or "The Golden Rule", as we preferred to call— we made when we were kids: _"Don't lie to each other. Share your secrets."_ But, I can't tell her why I come back here yet.

_If I could tell the truth to her..._

"Phin, why did you stop?" Isabella calls me and I chuckle in delight. _She still calls me 'Phin'_.

"Ah, nothing Izzy. I'm just thinking of something." I still remember the nickname I gave for her.

"Oh, okay." She says happily. After a few steps, she calls me again. "Phin..."

"What is it, Izzy?"

"How was your life doing in the past few years?"

I blinked. _How's my life in the past years?_

"It's... very good, I guess." I said.

_No, it's not good_! I hear the voice again in my brain. _Why are you still keeping yourself telling her some of your lies? When you first entered the school, you're life went cuckoo. You were being bullied. You didn't have a choice but to keep a low profile. You never keep that smile of yours on that face! But luckily, you survived in those four years. Do you want me to tell you why? Do you want me to remember the only reason why you came back?!_

_Shut up please! _I frantically shouted at the voice in my mind.

_It's because of—_

"Oh, Mr. Flynn and Ms. Garcia-Shapiro, come inside." Sir Ross's voice interrupts the voice.

"Th-thanks, sir." I manage to reply as we get inside of the classroom.

"Isabella, are you alright? What happened?" The girls ask her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just the stress." She answers. As we go to our seats, I help Isabella to sit down but she stops me.

"Phin, you've already done much help to me. I can do this."

"Are you sure?" I ask her again.

"Phin!" She demands.

"Alright, alright. I'll stop." I chuckle.

"Ooh, looks like _something_ is developing here." One of our classmates tease and the whole class, except for me and Izzy, squeals but then Sir Ross reprimands our classmates with his—sorry for the word—"big mouth" and the class immediately keeps the silence again. I sneak a glance at Isabella and I notice that her cheeks are flaring red. I want to ask her about it but it seems that she's fine.

I look again at Sir Ross but my attention is still on her, then I plaster the smile I never had in four years. I'm glad that she's all right. I want to ask her. I want to tell her that secret. Or secrets. I never hide any secret to her. But now, I'm hiding her two secrets from her and I feel bad about it. Why do I need to do this anyway? Why do I need to hide it?

Yeah, right. Because I'm scared.

_How was your life doing, Isabella? After I left? Did you have that sweet smile even though I was not here?_

I remember the day when I told her about me moving to New York.

_My one of my worst days ever._

* * *

><p><em><strong>What do you think? A little bit dramatic? Oh please, can you tell me? I'm panicking thinking what kind of reactions you have for this story!<strong>_

_**As you noticed, Isabella and Phineas used a language. Those language are pretty ancient but I think you know it. I know! Let's have a little contest. I can't assure you any prizes but can you tell me what is the language they used in every chapter? I'm pretty excited to hurt your brain a little.**_

_**So, I'm gonna go now. **_

_**(PhinabellaDirectioner's goin' out now. See ya soon, my fellow brethren!)**_


	4. Chapter 3: Midnight Memories

**_Hi~!_  
><strong>

**_I'm sorry if I update late now. It's been a SUPER DUPER BUSY month because of the graduation, college, entrance exams, JS Prom, and Finals. I'm really sorry but since it is summer vacation here in my place, I might finish the other chapters and give you the Prologue of the next installment of the trilogy. _**

**_So, I give you the Chapter 3! Enjoy reading._**

**_(Disclaimer: Okay. I don't own it. And I already accept that fact.)_**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chapter 3: Midnight Memories<em>**

_**It is been three days after the first day of the school year and I'm having a few problems in regards of adjusting myself here.**_

In the previous years of staying in New York was really hard for me. Being bullied big-time and invisible at the same made me feel alone and useless. Nevertheless, getting back here in Danville—my only home—isn't easy as I expected the most as I stepped my foot in return, but with the help of my friends—especially Isabella—bit by bit, I'm pretty sure that I'll get used living here again.

Speaking of Isabella, though we were separated in a long time—no letters, no phone calls—I'm very glad that we're still talking, laughing, and hanging out just like the old times. But... I can still feel the sadness, guilt, and regret because I made an empty promise to my very first best friend. I feel bad when I saw those angry but sad eyes. Her voice was almost broken because of her sob. But then, she muttered those Greek words and I felt relieved. Happy. Cloud nine. Until now, I feel like I'm living in the eighth heaven.

_"You never send me a letter." _Her voice echoes in the back of my head._ "You never called me, like you promised on that day. And then, you're just gonna go back here like everything never changed and you're gonna say that I'm still your best friend? Huh, don't make me a fool Phineas. Maybe you don't care about me. Maybe you don't care what would happen to me. Maybe you don't even care that I blacked out in the classroom! Maybe you don't even care that one day, my life would be taken unexpectedly!"_

Although... I know that relief won't last long.

I know our friendship doesn't stay the same. We might have some awkward and tongue-tied moments in the near future. It's possible that our likes and personalities are replaced in our separation with new ones. I know in myself that we will feel the difference that we got in the past years. _I know that everything has changed._

"Phineas? Phin? Isabella to Phineas? Hello...? Are you there?"

And back to the story.

"Y-yeah?" I half stutter as I face Isabella sitting beside me on our sofa.

"Did you hear Sir Ross about our home delight?" She questions me while she arranges her books.

"Home delight?" I raise my eye brow then I get what she means with that. "Oh... you mean assignment?"

She gives me her look. "Uh... yeah."

"Actually, no. I'm sorry. I guess I don't have my focus on track for now." I tell her as I scratch my temple.

"You and your excuses. Anyway, Sir Ross told us that we need to write a narrative essay about one specific childhood memory that left a mark in our hearts and in our minds."

"Childhood memory? That's an interesting topic to work in an essay." I comment as I start to think of a good childhood memory.

_Ask her about her essay!_ The voice in my head tells me.

_Why do you always want to ruin my moment?_ I exclaim mentally.

However, because of my curiosity I have no choice but to follow the voice. "H-have you think of an idea already?"

"Well, uh..." She shyly smiles.

"Tell me!" I excitingly exclaim as I realize that my hand is almost holding hers. I clear my throat as I remove my hand and I move an inch away from her. "Uh... what I am trying to say is: can you at least tell me a bit about it?"

She sticks out her tongue playfully. "Not now, Phin."

I heave a sigh. "Okay."

"By the way," continues Isabella, "have you heard some news from Ferb?"

"You know Ferb Fletcher, Izzy. He's pretty busy studying for the Oxford entrance exams. He wants to study there since we were kids, remember?" I answer as I munch a cookie. Mmm, delicious.

"Yeah, I know but—" She stops talking as she looks at me. "Phineas, where did you get that cookie?"

"Uh at ablul." I answer as I still eat the cookie.

"What?" She asks, confused.

I swallow the cookie and I look at her. "On the table. Why?"

She looks at me like she wants to punch me. "What?" I demand. "I'm hungry!"

"Those cookies on the table are for your parents! I baked those just for them!" She exclaims.

"Sorry." I wink at her just to tease her and she pinches my nose very hard. "OUCH! That hurts!"

"That's for eating the cookie." She says as she stops pinching my nose.

I rub my nose to lessen the redness and pain. "Oh, before I forgot to say, your cookies are so delicious."

She didn't react at first but then, her lips twitch a smile. "Thank you very much, Phineas."

A long silence makes my ears deaf but the opening of the front door breaks it. We stand up and Isabella starts to get her things on the table. I notice a red flush on her cheeks and ears and as she stuffs her things in her satchel and slings it then we walk towards the door and I help Mom on her groceries.

"Thanks, Phineas." Mom tells me and I crack a tiny smile.

"Hello, Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher!" Isabella greets.

"Is that you, Isabella?" Mom asks as she widens her eyes. "You... changed."

"Um..." Izzy's face becomes pink. "Thank, Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher."

"You got thinner and taller. Slim, to be exact."

"Well, I got loads of workouts." I clear my throat and Isabella glares at me. She looks at her wristwatch and her eyes widens. "Oh my. I... need to go. Thanks for the notes, Phin. I'll return it first thing tomorrow."

"Okay and no problem." I say.

She opens the door but she turns back and looks at Mom. "I left a bowl of cookies for you, Mrs. Flynn-Fletcher but," she gives me her look, "Phineas already ate one."

"Really? Thank you, Isabella. So kind of you." Mom winks at me then she walks out.

Isabella smiles at me and I smile back. "Do your essay."

"I will." I tell her. "Stay safe."

"I will." And she leaves as she closes the door.

"You know, Phineas," Mom suddenly talks at my back, breaking the silence around me as I turn around to look at her, "she becomes more beautiful than you were kids. Ah... time is passing by really fast, huh?"

I smile as I mutter in my breath, "Yes, yes it is."

* * *

><p>"I'm home!" I shout after I slam the door behind me. The deafening silence welcomes me as I step in the living room. I take a peek at the kitchen but Mom isn't there. I just see some food on the table and a taped note on the refrigerator I snatch it and read it. It is Mom's handwriting and here it says:<p>

_Isa, I won't be able to come home early tonight. Just stay inside and, tomorrow we will have your check-up. Stay safe and I love you, mija! –Mom_

I sigh and go back to the living room. I check out the food Mom left for me. I smile that she gave me my favourites—apple, French toast, and orange-pineapple juice. I sling my satchel, stuff all the French toast in my mouth, and climb upstairs to my room, bringing the apple and the juice with me.

My room didn't change its appearance at all in the past four years. There's still that pink wallpaper, that soft pink bed, that pink cabinet, and many more pink-y things. But don't forget the most important thing in my room—it's my framed picture of me and Phineas at my 6th birthday. I smile as I settle on my bed and I remove my contact lenses. I prepare my paper and pen at the same time, I wear my eyeglasses. Meanwhile, my mind starts to recall a piece of the past as I let my hand write my essay.

* * *

><p>I start to prepare the buffet as Mom is grilling the steaks. I'm very, very excited because this is the first time that I'll be celebrating my birthday in my new home with my new friends. Back in Mexico, I never had friends to celebrate so only Mom and Dad were with me every year but when Dad died... Mom and I tried to be happy in my 4th and 5th birthday but to be honest, the sadness is still haunting us. I didn't know why Dad died but Mom told me that I will find the right time to know the reason.<p>

_Nevertheless, I blame myself because it was my fault why he died._

After putting all the food on the table, I rush my way to the kitchen as I see Mom making my favourite dessert—macaroons.

"Mom! Can I go to Phineas's?" I say. "He just arrived from his trip to London."

"Sure. Just be careful, mija." She replies. When I start to walk, I accidentally trip over a chair and I fall down, my knees fall first. Mom quickly rushes up to me.

"Ouch..." I mumble.

"Isa, what happened? I just told you to be careful." Mom asks.

"The chair..." I answer.

"Let me guess, you are wearing your old contacts, am I right?" I nod as she helps me to stand up. She walks towards the cabinet to get something I really need and I really hate.

"Oh please, Mom. Can I please use these contacts instead of that?" I plead. "And when do I wear my lenses again?"

"I'm sorry, mija. Your current vision is way too blurry now. You need to wait for your new lenses and maybe you'll get it as soon as possible but for now..." She hands me my eyeglasses. This is the thing I really need but I seldom wear it because the doctor said it will blur my vision more so I wear contacts. As of now, my vision is 200:180. A little high but I don't want to blur my eyes more. As I look at the eyeglasses, it looks ordinary to me. It has black and thin frame and the lenses are thick and multi-coated. When I wear it, my vision becomes clearer than I wore my old contacts.

"Do you see clearly now?" Mom asks.

"Yup. My vision went to high definition."

She chuckles. "That's a good thing."

"But... It looks weird to me, right?" I ask to Mom but she didn't reply. Instead, she only smiles and I smile back. "I'll be back in an hour."

"Take your time." She tells me and she shifts back to the macaroons.

I run out of our house, still smiling. Three months ago, I told Phineas my birth date as he told me his birth date. I don't know if he still remembers it but my hopes are still high. Anyway, a week ago, Phineas told me that he, his mom, and Candace will go to London. He doesn't want to tell me about it even though I tried to persuade him, but he said that he'll tell me after the trip.

As I slow my pace and hide myself, I see Phineas talking with a boy. Taller than him, the boy has unusually large nose, green hair, and blue eyes. As I shift my eyes back to Phin, he looks like he is having fun and enjoying his bonding time with that kid.

I feel something in my chest. Something I didn't feel in the past years of my life. It's getting heavy that I couldn't stand lifting it like a rock—a huge and heavy rock—then I sense that a tear is falling out of my eye. I can't stand this.

"Isabella?" I hear his voice from a distance so I don't look back and I run.

I run as fast as I can. I run as far as I can reach. I just want to remove this rock in my chest but as I want to get away from him, I feel heavier and heavier and in the end, I can't stand the heaviness that my feet do their thing and stop running then my legs fall down on my knees.

I can't push back my tears so I let it out. Then I hear a faint sound. Footsteps. Towards me.

"Hey, you okay?" A familiar voice. I open my eyes and I glimpse at the face of my best friend.

"Yeah." I try to command my eyes to stop releasing tears and I wipe it. "I'm okay."

"Are you sure?" His hand reaches for my cheek but I move my head away a little.

"I said that I'm okay, Phineas. Don't you understand that?" Anger fills my voice.

"Isabella..." I know he didn't make me cry intentionally and directly but to be honest, this is the first time that he made me cry.

"Phineas, just go away. Please." I beg as I stand up and start to walk away from him. Again.

"Izzy, please... don't leave me." I hear his voice. The rock inside me weighs almost a ton for me. His voice is like an anvil. I look back and I see again his face, filled with sadness.

"Phin..." I walk but not away from him. Instead, I walk towards him and I envelope him in a hug. I don't know why but something inside me wanted me to embrace him, and I didn't regret that I followed it.

"Y-you wear glasses now, huh?" He says as he breaks the silence between us. I release him and smile.

"Obviously. Need to wear this thing until I get my new contact lenses." I tell him.

"I didn't know you wear contacts."

"What? You think that I look weird with this?"

"No! Um... actually, you look better in both but," He takes off my glasses and my blurry vision goes back, "your eyes are pretty without them."

I feel paralyzed as I sense his hand grabbing mine then he leans his forehead on mine and his warm smile makes me... _mesmerized._

"Happy birthday, Isabella." He whispers. "Sorry if I made you cry on your special day."

_What...?_ "Phineas, you didn't—"

"I know it, Isabella. Since I saw you while I'm talking to Ferb."

"Who is Ferb?"

"My step-brother. My mom and his dad married while we're in London. That's why we went there."

"Oh."

Long pause.

"I'm really sorry, Isabella." He says it one more time.

I smile. "Phineas, it's okay. At least you didn't forget to greet me. Thanks a lot."

I feel the heat rushing on my face so I move a little bit far as he hands me my glasses back. I notice that his face is red and sweaty. He helps me to stand up and he puts his hands on his pockets—his habit he shows around me.

"_Te audio?_" I ask him as I start to walk with him. _(You alright?)_

"Yeah. Oh, before I forgot about it. _Natalis aliquid feci._" He says as he smiles. _(I got something for your birthday.)_

"_Lorem ipsum dolor? Quid est hoc?_" _(Seriously? What is it?)_

He winks at me and he holds my hand again. "_Videbis._" _(You will see.)_

* * *

><p>I think all of us love surprises. The excitement, the rush, the happiness—those are the things we could feel as we expect the unexpected. I love surprises too, but I hate the part where the person who has the surprise puts the blindfold on me.<p>

As Phineas and I are on the way to his surprise, he suddenly stops.

"What happened?_ Quid est?_" I ask._ (What's wrong?)_

"_Hoc enim vobis necessaria est._" I notice a hanky on his hand. He removes my glasses again and covers my eyes with it. I couldn't see anything but darkness. _(You need this.)_

"Do I need to? Phin..." I try to plead but it is too late. He holds my hand and we run.

"Don't worry, Izzy. I got you. Nothing will hurt you as long you hold my hand." He says.

Do you want to know why I don't want this part? Well... in my last birthday, Dad tried to give me a surprise gift. As always, he gave me a blindfold and I wore it. As seconds passed, I saw darkness and I noticed a moaning sound on my left. Dad told me that he was okay and when I removed the blindfold, I saw him lying on the cold floor, unconscious. I ran to him as I called for help.

"You ready?" I hear Phin's voice as I sense that we're slowing down.

I gulp. I feel excited and scared at the same time but I try to be calm and trust my best friend on this. "Yup. I'm ready."

"_Tres._" He says as I sense his hands are taking off the knot on the hanky. (_On three._)

"_Tres ... duo ... unum!_" _(Three... two... one!)_

Finally, he removes the blindfold and in a snail's pace, I open my eyes. As the light blinds me, my blurry vision goes back again. Phineas gives my glasses my back and at the same time as I wear it, I see his gift for me—a bike. Words on my throat couldn't convert into sound.

"Did you like it?" He asks and because of being speechless for now, I rush towards him and I tackle him in a tight hug. I can smell his scent—his sweat mixing with his cologne. He hugs me back but tighter than mine, like he doesn't want to let me go forever.

At long last, I can say a word or two so I said, "_Lorem ipsum, Phineas._" _(Thanks, Phineas.)_

"You're welcome." He says. When I break the hug, I smile but it fades in a split second.

"What's the problem?" He raises his brow.

"I can't... ride it." I point out the bike he gave for me. "I can't ride it unless it has the small wheels."

"Oh, come on. You don't need those. I'll teach and train you." I look at him. "_Nolite ergo solliciti esse, bene?_" _(Don't worry, okay?)_

I nod. "Okay."

When I sit down on the bike's seat, my hands are sweating and shaking. I _never_ rode a bike before.

"Don't worry, Izzy. I'll be here for you." He whispers and I heave a sigh. I guess I have no choice.

"So, all you have to do is to pedal and look at the road straight. I'll hold the bike and when you finally learn how to balance and to shift your weight, I'll let the bike go. Oh, I almost forgot, when you feel that you're too fast, just use the brakes gently. You don't want to fly high off of your bike, do you?" He playfully jokes and my lips crack a smile. "Are you ready now?"

"_Ut enim._" I reply. _(As always.)_

I start to pedal the bike and Phineas holds my left shoulder and my hand tightly. A surge of heat is flaring in my face. Unlike the stone, this heat is making me feel so happy and light. No one ever made me feel this way. _Only Phineas._

"Isabella!" Phin shouts and I realize that he doesn't hold my hand and shoulder anymore. I can balance now, but before I could celebrate, my panic rises. I scream as I perceive that my hands go numb. _I'm going to die!_

"Isabella, just focus!" I overhear Phin's voice on my left. He is running after me. "Don't let the panic take over you!" He stops running as he tries to get some air as he pants heavily.

He's right. I need to get back to the track. I must obtain my focus again.

"_So,_" I have the sense of hearing of his voice in my head, "_all you have to do is to pedal and look at the road straight... when you feel that you're too fast, just use the brakes gently._"

I reach for the breaks and bit by bit as I grab a little tight, the bike starts to slow its speed. I widen my smile and as a burst of excitement, I pedal more as the wind goes past to me. I laugh a little and I pedal my way back to Phineas.

"_Et ego feci eum! Feci!_" I shout. _(I made it! I did it!)_

"Way to go, Isabella!" Phin says while holding his wide smile.

I grin. "The last one who will arrive at the backyard won't get a macaroon!" I yell and I start to pedal my way to my house.

"Wait!" I can hear his voice at my back. "Whose backyard, Izzy? And... hey, no fair!"

I look at my back and I see that he started running again. Poor Phineas. I didn't tell him whose backyard we should go. I shift my head back to the road and I pedal faster.

* * *

><p>I smile at the childhood memory as I end my essay then I reach for my special box on my nightstand. I open it and I grab my old eyeglasses I wore on that day. As of now, my vision is 400:380. It's higher than before so I prefer contact lenses and I use it frequently than my eyeglasses.<p>

"_No! Um... actually, you look better in both but... your eyes are pretty without them._" I hear his voice in my head. I giggle as I lay down and I glance at my clock—it's already 12:15 AM. I hope I won't have another sleepless night this time.

* * *

><p>I couldn't concentrate on my essay. I tried to do everything to regain it but it's no use to me. I look at my watch and it's currently 11:00 PM. I lay down on my bed and I glimpse at Ferb's empty bed. Since last year, we haven't kept in touch with each other because he and I were busy, with SCHOOLWORKS. Especially, he's readying for the college entrance exams at Oxford. I sigh at the same time as I open the windows, the cold breeze enters in my room and I shiver in response. I grab my binoculars and I look for Isabella's window. I do this every time back when I was a kid so I admit: this is my nightly habit.<p>

Her lights are still on so she's working on her essay. At least she's having a progress while I'm stuck with no ideas around my head. If I could just invent an essay-writing machine. I groan in annoyance. Why is my brain giving me a hard time?!

"_Remember this, Phineas,_" my old teacher from my old school, Mr. Rosa, once told me, "_if you can't think of anything good, find something that can help you. Find an inspiration. It may not necessarily a person but if you have, the better. That inspiration of yours will help you to clear your mind._"

_Well, if there is one inspiration I have... what could it be?_

I put down my binoculars and I shift my eyes at our backyard then I widen my eyes a little. A light bulb appears above my head. I grab my pencil, my yellow paper, and eraser and I run downstairs quickly but quietly and rush to the backyard. When I get there, I stare at the tree. The memories surge in my mind bit by bit.

"Now I know what I'm gonna do tonight." I mumble.

I climb up the tree and once I get the perfect place, I close my eyes as my left hand starts to write and my mind races to my most memorable childhood story.

* * *

><p>"Phin! I got the cookies and cupcakes!" Isabella shouts as she enters our backyard.<p>

"That's brilliant! I already fixed the sleeping bag." I say at the same time, I rub my forehead in exhaustion.

"Mom already let me to stay here so you got me all night long." She smiles excitingly. "But wait, why only one sleeping bag, Phineas?"

"Izzy, take note—it's one _big_ sleeping bag. Don't you want to sleep with me on it?" I ask.

"No, no! It's not like that. I'm just asking." I smile as she lies down on the sleeping mat.

Izzy and I are best friends for a year and I decided to have a little celebration just to have some fun with her tonight. She changes a lot—from her dress and her hair to her personality. The first time I meet her, she was crying because she thinks everybody wants her to get into trouble and sadness. Now she smiles a lot, she always makes funny jokes, and she starts to hang out with everyone.

"That's good because I like that idea of yours. Good thing we don't have any homework this weekend. Too bad Ferb isn't here with us right now. " She tells me as I sit beside her then she looks up to glimpse the dark sky. "Is it beautiful, isn't it?"

"The what?" I ask, a little clueless.

"The starts."

"Oh. Y-yeah."

She goes quiet for a while but she breaks the silence around us as she whispers, "I wish there will be a shooting star wandering at the sky."

I look at her. "Do you have a wish to tell at a shooting star right now, Isabella?"

She nods. "How about you?"

"To be honest, I don't have." I say to her as I tug my shirt.

"That's ridiculous! Everyone has wishes; maybe you haven't discovered it."

"Maybe." I answer. When we look at the sky again, a shooting star appears and Isabella jumps up in excitement.

"Look, Phineas! A shooting star!" She exclaims. I smile and stand up. Just this little thing makes her very happy, and every time she's happy, I feel happier than before.

"Well," I say, "make a wish now, Izzy."

She smiles at me and she did the unexpected thing I never expect of. She puts her arms around me as if she's giving me a hug, her chin is resting on my shoulder, and she puts her hands on my pockets.

"W-wh-what are you doing, Isabella?" I stutter out while I feel a tingly feeling on my shoulder.

"Dad told me in ancient times," she half whispers, "people put their hands on one of their loved ones' pockets. They believed that the god of the stars would hear their greatest wish."

"You believe on that myth?" I ask.

"Dad believed on it, so as I."

After a minute, she finally removes her hands on my pockets and she smirks at me. "I hope the god of the stars would hear my wish."

I want to say that her wish wouldn't happed but I don't want to ruin her happiness so I just say, "I hope that too."

There is an eerie silence around us but as usual, I break it. "What did you say? To the god of the stars, I mean."

"It's kind of a secret."

"Oh, come on." I exclaim. Her face goes dark.

"Dad told me that there is a rule we should have in mind when we wish something to the god of the stars—The Great Rule." She mumbles.

"The Great Rule?"

"Yes. If one told his or her wish..."

"The effect of the wish would fade?"

"No. Worse."

"What do you mean?"

"The effect of the wish would remain but in exchange..." She trails off but she manages to speak. "...either you or one of your loved ones would disappear in your life."

I raise my brow. "What do you mean by 'disappear'?"

She looks at my eyes; her eyes are full of sadness. "It can be, um... you would be separated from that person or that person would disappear literally or..."

"Or death." I finish for her and she nods in response as I notice that she's crying.

"Isabella...? Why are you...?" I ask.

"I think it was my fault why Dad died. I did the most regrettable thing in my whole life." She sniffs.

"You mean...?"

"Yes. I told somebody about my wish. My very first wish..." She cries more. "It's entirely my fault, Phineas. I killed Dad. You know, I want to erase that thing from my unchangeable script I've written."

I hold her shoulders tightly. "Isabella, don't blame yourself. If I were your Dad, I won't blame my own daughter because..." I trail off. Oh great, I'm out of words.

"Because what? Because of what, Phineas? Nothing!" She hollers. "He hates me, Phin. Nothing can change that fact."

"It's because," I continue, "your father loves you, Isabella. No parent hates his or her child, even though we repeatedly hurt them."

"Phineas... how do you know that thing?" She asks while sniffling and my smile fades. I wipe her tears and hug her in comfort.

"Dad told me... before he died. Those are his exact last words in his last breath."

"Oh..." Her voice trails away. "Phineas..."

"Nah, don't worry because I'm alright, Isabella. Y'know what can make me happy?"

"What?" She asks me back, a little dense. I mentally sigh.

"Your smile, dummy. C'mon. Lemme see that smile. Please?" I beg then she finally smiles. "There you are."

"Phineas, thanks a lot."

"Don't thank me." I climb up the tree and look down. "Wanna go up with me?"

Her smile widens. "Sure."

I grab her hand and when she comfortably lies on top of me, she sighs. I can't move but I don't want ruin her happy moment. After five minutes, I try to call her but it is too late for me. She's sleeping. While I glimpse at the dark sky, I observe a while dot moving to make a white line. _A shooting star._ I start to blush when a thing crosses in my brain but... there's nothing to lose if I tell my wish, right?

My breathing pattern begins to change as I sense that it's getting heavier than before. I slip my hands in Izzy's pockets and I close my eyes.

_God of stars, if you can hear me... please don't let my best friend Isabella's sweet smile to fade on her face. Please._

As I glance back at Isabella, she's still smiling. I know if I tell anybody about this, I would lose my life or someone I love. Nevertheless, maybe this is the thing I would never regret.

* * *

><p>"There at last! Finished my essay and..." I look out for my watch and— "Shoot! It's 1:00! I need to sleep now or I might be late for school!"<p>

I climb down and in my surprise; I hear a noise on my foot. "Grrr."

"Oh, there you are, Perry!" I carry my pet and tickle his bill. "Boy, you look pretty tired and exhausted. We should get some rest now."

But before we go inside, I give a last look at Isabella's window and the lights are out.

"_Nox, Isabella._" _(Good night, Isabella.)_

* * *

><p><strong><em>So what'cha think of it? Is it good or what?<em>**

**_In the last chapter, the language I used is Greek. Get ready with your guesses and reviews because I'm ready for it! _**

**_Gotta go now. :) _**

**_(PhinabellaDirectioner's gonna out for a while. Don't forget to review and rate!)_**


	5. Chapter 4: Haunted By A Nightmare

_**Ya, guys! **_

_**I'm sorry for the super duper late update. I was busy in the past weeks because of family gatherings and enrollment for college. Speaking of college, I have a little announcement. **_

_**Now that I'll be attending college next week, I'm still not sure if I can update this chapter since I'm taking BS Accountancy , which is a pretty hard course if you ask me. I'm already done writing Chapters 5 and 6 but I haven't typed them in my computer. So, please be patient and I'm really sorry for that. **_

_**So, let's get started to Chapter 4 of Long Time No See!**_

_**(Disclaimer: I remind you guys again that I don't own anything.)**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 4 – Haunted By A Nightmare<strong>_

**_ "_****_Uhhh." I yawn as I put my books and stationary inside my locker. _**

I barely slept last night because after I did my essay, I couldn't sleep nor could shut my eyes so I wrote something in my journal to make myself a little tired. However, it turns out that I spent my remaining hours writing on my journal instead of resting. Ever since I enter Dr. H. Krauss Learning Institute, I started writing journals because it's a part of whole-year activities in our English class in my previous school; also, it makes me feel better whenever I feel down. As of now, I have 4 journals (one for the past four years) and I'm currently writing a new one for this year.

"Hey, Dinner Bell." I slam my locker shut as I hear Buford's voice at my back. I turn around to look at him and Baljeet.

"Hi, guys." I greet as I beam at them but Buford is busy as he gives Baljeet a wedgie and I wince a little. "Oooh. You okay, Jeet?"

"I am okay. I get used on this, years ago." Baljeet retorts Buford sets him down.

"You should be, Nerdy Boy." Buford says.

"You know Buford, giving a wedgie is way too childish. We're young adults now. Grown-ups. Try to act like one." Baljeet says as I put my hands in my pockets.

"Dude. I'm just enjoying my teenage life to the fullest. Don't be such a killjoy."

"Fair enough." Then Baljeet looks at me again. "Hey, what's with the eye bags?"

"Eye bags? Are you kidding me?" I close my eyes and I rub them. "Can you just gimme a sec?"

Baljeet nods but Buford just shrugs. I walk in the wash room and hastily go to the sink. I start washing my face and close my eyes again. I sense a painful sting in my brain and it starts spinning. I shake my head hard and wipe my face to dry myself up then I walk out of the wash room.

"Sorry for the wait. Dang, it hurts." I rub my eyes again.

"Here, take some medicine here." Buford hands me an Advil and I guzzle it. Baljeet give me a bottle of water and I gulp the med.

"What happened?" Baljeet asks as we walk our way to the classroom.

I twitch my neck to lessen the pain then I scan the whole hallway but I haven't seen Isabella around. "I kinda stayed up all night doin' my essay and fixing my college application forms."

"And I thought I am the only one who is fixing that in advance." Baljeet jokes and we chuckle.

"Speaking of college, what course did you guys take for college?"

"Well, after 5 years of thinking," says Baljeet, "maybe I'll take Biochemistry."

I glance at Buford. "My mom wants me to go in military school but I really want to study Music major in Piano. How about you, Phineas?"

"Hmmm. To be honest, I'm kind of hesitant if I want to be in Civil Engineering or in Physics. It's just something is making me confused." I put my hand on my head.

"If that's the case, you got a lot of time and don't think too much or else you'll have the pressure in you." Buford grins.

"Wait, what's this? Buford Van Stomm is giving me an advice? _An advice?_"

Baljeet elbows me lightly and smirks. "It's a miracle, Phineas."

"Cut it out, guys." Buford says and we laugh.

We enter the classroom but still, I haven't seen Isabella, even her shadow. I put down my bag on my chair and walk to their seats. "Hey, have you seen Isabella?"

"Why? Did you miss her, huh Phineas?" Baljeet teases and I feel a warm tingling sensation in my stomach.

"No, I don't. I mean, I have to get my notes she borrowed yesterday. I want to study in advance."

"You're digressing."

"What? No. Why would I?" I ask and he goes silent. The truth is, yes. I miss her. But not in a way he thinks. "Never mind. I'll just text her."

I go to my seat as I text Isabella. _G'morning. Where are you? You're gettin' late for Sir Ross' class. Text me ASAP. Stay safe. :) _

Before I take my seat, I remember something and I see the person I need to talk with. "Gretchen, have you seen Isabella anywhere?"

"Wait a sec." She places her books under her desk then she looks at me as she adjusts her glasses. "Not yet. I haven't seen her or talk to her since yesterday. She didn't reply nor did she call me back."

"Is that so?" I say then something crosses my mind. "Uh—"

"You're trying to ask something, aren't you?" She smiles.

"How did you—"

"It's written on your face, Phineas. So, what do you want to ask?"

"Did something… or someone… hurt or make Isabella sad?" I ask as I sit down beside her.

"Um…" She goes silent for a while.

"I'm right. You know something that I don't. What is it?"

"Phineas…"

"I need to know it, Gretchen. Just please. I'm just concern of Isabella. My friend. Your friend. Please." She sighs but she's still silent. "Gretchen, I know she's hiding something from me. I need to know what is it and why she's hiding it."

She looks at me and one more time, she heaves a sigh. "When you left 4 years ago, Isabella was sad. Very sad, Phineas. She was just quiet and sometimes, she was crying at a corner. However, if we saw her crying, she would give us a fake smile and say, 'I'm okay. Don't worry.' I know she was lying. But that wasn't the worst thing could ever happen to her."

I raise my brow. "What do you mean?"

"A year after, a boy named Jandro Ramirez, a transferee from California, started to bully her. You know, he's far worse than Buford or those who bullied her at middle school. I tried to protect her but she said would take care of this alone. She never told her mom about it and she told me not to tell her because she doesn't want to make her mom worried."

"Why? Why is she doing this?" I demand.

"Maybe because… she doesn't want us to worry. She keeps thinking that she's just a burden. Whenever I try to raise that topic, she will just go silent or she will do something just to change the topic. She doesn't want to talk about it."

"Wait, is Jandro our classmate?"

"Yeah."

"What does he look?"

"He looks more of a… criminal… or a gangster, probably, than a simple delinquent. He has those treacherous eyes, buff arms, a little taller than you, and a deep voice. Deeper than Ferb's—"

"Wait, you're still talking to Ferb?" I grin.

She flushes red. "What? Well, yes but not always. Sometimes we just chat via FB. Sometimes we just talk via Skype. Wait, why did Ferb enter in this discussion? I was just describing Jandro."

I raise my hands. "Whoa, whoa. You're being defensive."

"Can I continue talking?"

"Yep, sure." I reply as I try not to laugh.

"Where was I? Oh yeah. Deeper than Ferb's. And by his attitude, I can say he's very negligent and reckless but in fairness, he's good at academics and athletics."

"Uh-huh." I comment.

"And you will identify him with his a little scar on his chin. He got it when he punched Isabella's chest then she grabbed a butter knife and… you know what happened next." I grit my teeth as she looks down on the desk. "That's everything I know. I'm sorry if I can't help you more."

I pat her shoulder and I stand up. "It's okay. At least I have an idea what's going on here. Thanks for telling me this, Gretchen… and one more thing?"

"What is it, Phineas?" She asks.

"Don't tell Isabella about our conversation, okay?"

She nods. "My big mouth is closed for Isabella Garcia-Shapiro."

I smile at her joke and the bell rings. I immediately totter to my seat as Sir Ross enters the room and the class rapidly becomes quiet.

"Okay, class! Please pass your essays forward then Mr. Flynn," he glance at me, "can you collect the papers and arrange it by alphabetical order?"

"Yes, Sir." I speak and I stand up from my seat. I start to collect the papers from Ginger and Milly then I arrange them in order.

"Please speak present or raise your hand if you're here. Du Bois?"

"Present!" Irving says.

"Van Stomm?"

"Here!"

"Tjinder?"

I ignore them as I think of Izzy. I hide my smartphone under my desk so Sir Ross couldn't confiscate it. She's still not here and in addition, she hasn't replied to my text.

"Hirano?"

"Present."

"Flynn…? Flynn!"

"Oh, sorry. Present." I mutter.

"Okay, that's all! Before I continue the discussion of the Greek Philosophers, Mr. Flynn, these are your notes from Ms. Garcia-Shapiro." He hands me my notebooks Izzy borrowed yesterday and two pieces of paper. "And please include her essay on the papers you're arranging."

"Sir? Do you know why she is not here yet?" I whisper.

"Well, not really but her mom said that she won't be able to attend today, due to some… personal reasons." He raise the volume of his voice as he starts the discussion but I'm curious.

Personal reasons? Why didn't she say anything about it to me yesterday?

_Where is she?_

* * *

><p>"Isa? Isa? Wake up. We're here now." I hear Mom's voice while she's trying to wake me up. I open my eyes and rub them as the irritating light enters.<p>

Today is my monthly general check-up and it's very important for me to attend this check-up because what I've felt in the past days, it's getting worse than before. I frequently feel dizzy and I keep having lethargy. The previous doctors can't describe that I have but they said that I'm okay and safe.

"Isabella, mija?" Mom calls my attention as we enter the hospital.

"Yeah?" I speak, afterwards we pace to the Nurse's Station.

"Do you feel anything?" I write my name on the clipboard and straight away, we enter the elevator.

"Aside from being sleepy, I'm okay." Mom looks at me with worry in her eyes. "Mom, don't worry. I'm safe and sound. Look, I'm pretty energetic!"

"I don't know, mija. I have this bad feeling." She says. "I can't afford to lose you."

I heave a sigh and hug her. "You won't lose me, Mom. I promise to Dad on his last moments that I will keep an eye on you."

She goes silent but in the end, she hugs me back and I feel her warm smile. We broke the hug at the same time as the elevator doors swing open. As I step my foot, I feel nervous because like Mom, I know something terrible will happen. I'm not certain what it is but part of me doesn't wanna know more about it.

As I knock the door of the clinic of my doctor—Dr. Hanley Jefferson—I open it and in instant, I see him fixing his papers and things on his table. He hastily stands up and he gives me one of his crooked smiles.

"Heyya, Isabella! How are you doin'?" Dr. Jefferson greets and I give him a smile.

"Hi, Doc. I'm just doing fine." I yawn loudly and my face flushes pink. "Excuse me, Doc. I was up all night doing my homework and you know, studying stuffs."

_Lie. _

He shakes his head. "Tsk, tsk. You should sleep for eight hours, Isabella. Complete. Please, have a seat." We sit on the green sofa in front of his table and he sits on his chair.

"I'm really sorry, Dr. Jefferson. I'm just trying to maintain my good standing in academics."

He sighs. "It's okay, as long as you're not doing it habitually. Anyway, are you ready for your check up?"

I beam. "Yup."

"Well then, but may I ask some questions before the actual check-up?" I nod. "Did you feel anything bad in the past days?"

I glance at Mom then I shift my look back to Dr. Jefferson. "Um… in the first day of school, I palpitated and my breathing started to get shorter and eventually, I blacked out."

"Hmmm. Do you take your medicines regularly?"

"At that day, I forgot to take it after breakfast and I also overlook to bring it with me because I'm getting late for the first day, but…"

"But what?"

My heart starts to beat faster. "Dr. Jefferson, I need to tell you something."

"What is it, Isabella?"

"Um… I'm not sure if it's true but I think the meds aren't working. I mean, after that incident, I feel like I'm out of energy and breath. I'm getting pale too. The effects of the meds are wearing off faster than before."

He exhales and rubs his eyes for a while before he prepares his stethoscope. "I need to check your chest for a while."

I remove my pink checkered blouse then I raise my white chemise a little, and he lays the circular metal thing on my back.

"Now breathe deep." He commands.

"Okay." I breathe.

"A little deeper, please." I breathe in my nose. "Now, hold that."

I count mentally in my head and after ten seconds, he puts down the stethoscope. "It's okay."

I exhale and he hands me my blouse. "As of now, your heartbeats seem normal but we need more tests."

Then he starts to check my vitals in a series of tests. He conducts a complete physical examination; then using the electrocardiogram (or ECG) he tests the traces of the electrical activity of my heart. When we finish the tests, I sit down and Dr. Jefferson jots down on a piece of paper then he glances at Mom.

"Well, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro, I'm sorry but for now, I can't give any definite diagnosis of Isabella's sickness. You should come back in the next months to me to conduct more tests to see if there are any changes regarding her heart." He shifts his eyes to me. "Isabella, I have some reminders to tell before I end this check-up."

"Okay, shoot it." I tried to sound enthusiastic but I'm kinda worried. I'm worried if he will still forbid me to play soccer since that was my favorite sport and I'm the team captain of the school's girls' varsity team.

"You should still take your medicines even if you feel the bad effects don't wear off, still in the right dosage and in the time of intake. Enjoy healthy eating and achieve and maintain a healthy body , you should avoid taking diuretics. As what I've said earlier, you should sleep, eight hours or more. And Isabella, don't stress out yourself too much. Do you have something to ask?"

"Well, I have nothing." I lie. I wanna ask if I'm fragile or not but I don't want to raise that. Not now.

"Okay. So, still no intense and strenuous activities for you. You got that?"

I nod as I mentally sigh. _Still no soccer for me._ "I got it."

"That's all for today."

After the check-up, we decide to go home so I can take a rest for the rest of the day. I hail a cab and after we enter, it quickly gains its speed. On the way home, Mom instantly drifts into sleep and I gaze at the window while I think of what happened in my nightmare last night.

I've been dreaming of the same nightmare since last year.

_And I still don't know what it really means._

* * *

><p>I groaned as I shook my head. "Where am I?"<p>

My vision was getting to sharpen and I found myself in a car, driving the route I haven't ever known but in the back of my head, I knew I was still here in Danville. I scanned everything that surrounded me and I noticed that there was an open space—an empty lot probably—then I looked at my right and I saw an abandoned factory but beside of it were a series of stores selling some things like ceramics, antiques, and etc.

"Strange. I haven't seen this place before." I murmur in my breath.

I continued inspecting on the area and I passed by a cemetery. I didn't see the name of the cemetery and suddenly, I sensed that the car was gaining its speed from 20 miles per hour, afterwards I glimpsed back at the road.

There was a truck on my way and in my speed, I might collide with it. I tried to step the brakes but my feet weren't moving. My brain started to panic. In a matter of seconds, I would be crashed in this car.

I checked the mechanism of the car then I noticed something in the wheel. I quickly removed the wheel cover and my eyes opened wide. The air bag was removed. I looked down and gripped the emergency brake but it wasn't working at all.

"I need to get out of here!" I said.

I punched and elbowed the window but the glass was too hard to break and I flinched in pain. "Ouch…"

I attempted to scream for help but I couldn't find my voice. I opened my mouth but there was no voice came out. I struggled to swerve the car away from the road; however, my hands couldn't move in my command. My whole body was paralyzed and deaden.

My heart is thumping louder and louder as the speed of the car rose to 80 miles per hour. 90. 100. 110. Without my command, my hands grasped the wheel harder as my body braced for the impact.

In the end, the car smashed at the truck. Five seconds after, the car flew and spin in mid air then it finally crashed on the ground and my eyes flew open.

Whenever I see that nightmare, I always found myself panting and sweating in the middle of my sleep. My eyes were releasing tears and my hands were shaking. The next morning, I felt so exhausted and dizzy.

* * *

><p>I never mention that nightmare to anyone, to my friends, and especially, to Mom. I don't want them to feel worried about a dream.<p>

The thing is, the nightmare is real for me. The collision, the actual car, everything feel real. I gaze at the cloudy sky and think about what Dr. Jefferson told me.

_"__You should still take your medicines even if you feel the bad effects don't wear off, still in the right dosage and in the time of intake."_

Three times a day of beta blockers, one at a time. However, I seldom forget taking it.

_"__Enjoy healthy eating and achieve and maintain a healthy body , you should avoid taking diuretics."_

Yep. Green vegetables, citrus fruits, and no junk foods or sodas. According to the BMI, since I'm 5'1 I need to maintain a body weight from 110 to 120 lbs.

_"__As what I've said earlier, you should sleep, eight hours or more."_

If that nightmare didn't occur in my sleep, I would be sleeping for about 10 hours. Then again, because of my school activities, I usually sleep for exact 8 hours but when I dream that nightmare, I barely sleep for two hours only.

_"__Still no intense and strenuous activities for you."_

No risky activities again. Great, I will never be in the soccer team this year again.

_"__And Isabella, don't stress out yourself too much."_

Don't stress too much? That's a little impossible. Now that Phin is back, I'm sure I'll be having some emotional issues in the near future.

What kind of illness I have? Is it a danger to me? How will I die? By this illness? Or will I die in an accident like what happened in my nightmare? Whatever the answer is, the thought still haunts me.

_The thought of death._

* * *

><p><strong><em>That's all for today!<em>**

**_By the way, besides writing Long Time No See, I'm currently writing an upcoming story in Wattpad entitled Mysterious Love and an upcoming Phineas and Ferb fanfic with one of my friends here in FanFiction. I won't say the title, the plot of the story, and the name of my partner-in-tandem but I hope you, my readers, will support them and enjoy reading the stories. Hehe. _**

**_So, I must go now. _**

**_(PhinabellaDirectioner is gonna out now. Peace!)_**


	6. Chapter 5: Defending

_**Ya, guys!**_

_**I'm so so so sorry for the super duper late update. I really missed a lot of things. Especially... ACT YOUR AGE! YEAH, BABY! I CAN'T WAIT!**_

_**Anyways, have fun on this chapter. I'm in my girl of few words at this moment. Enjoy!**_

_**(Disclaimer: Phineas and Ferb isn't my creation, sadly.)**_

* * *

><p><strong>"Chapter 5: Defending"<strong>

**_My alarm clock rings after I woke up. _**

Actually, I couldn't sleep and even I try to, something still jumbles me until now. I can't just stop thinking about it. What if Phin has a girlfriend now from his previous school but he wants to hide it from me? What if he will do something that will make me hurt? What if in the end, he will leave me alone?

I sigh on the thought. I can't stand it. I wanna stop thinking too much about it but my mind jerks me to think about it all over again.

After lying on my bed, I start readying myself for school. I didn't make myself pressured on the time because I have an hour and half before the first class. As soon as I'm done with my bath, I wear my new set of clothes—a dress with white top and pink skirt, a bracelet, and white sandals, afterwards I comb my hair and braid it—fishtail. Before I go down, I check my smartphone. I forgot to bring it yesterday with me on the check-up.

There are 3 unread messages.

**From: Gretchen**

**Received: 7: 30 AM, September 25**

_Hey, chief! Where are you? I haven't seen you here in school. Missing in action again, huh? Call me when you got this._

I reply to her.

**To: Gretchen**

**Sent: 6:37 AM, September 26**

_Sorry for the late reply and sorry if I didn't say a word. I just attended my monthly check-up yesterday. Can I borrow some of your notes later? See ya at the class. _

I check the two remaining messages.

**From: Phineas :)**

**Received: 8:00 AM, September 25**

_G'morning. Where are you? You're gettin' late for Sir Ross' class. Text me ASAP. Stay safe. :) _

**From: Phineas :)**

**Received: 4:00 PM, September 25**

_Izzy, where are you? Sir Ross just gave me the notes you borrowed and he announced that you wouldn't be able to catch up because of some "personal issues". What happened to you? Please call me as you as you read this message. I'm so worried about you. Stay safe._

My cheeks redden when I read the last part of the message again. Well, I know he always cares about me but this different. I can feel it. I can feel that he's trying to say something to me but I can't crack it up. Nah, I should ignore it. Maybe it's really nothing.

"Isa! You better be here; the breakfast is ready!" Mom shouts from the kitchen.

"Okay, just a minute!" I yell as I put my phone in my pocket then I go downstairs and walk into the kitchen. I assist Mom while she's cooking some French toast.

"Wait, mija. I'll take care of this. Just sit down." She utters and I heave a sigh.

"Okay, alright." I take my seat and Mom gives me my omelet.

"To be frank, I didn't sleep again." I admit and she exhales nosily.

"Mija, what's wrong?" She quickly sits down. "Do you feel anything—"

I smile. "Mama, relax. Everything is fine. I am fine. Okay?"

"But—look mija, I'm just worried about you. After what happened with your Dad… I just…" She looks down. "I can't stand that you're suffering. I can't just lose you."

"Mom…" I reach your hand. "You _won't_ lose me. I promise to you and Dad that, right?"

She looks at me. "You know, let's finish our breakfast or else, I might bawl here."

We gobble our food and something crosses in my mind. "Mama?"

"Yes, mija?"

"Um… how did Dad die…? I mean, what was his illness…?"

Her face goes dark. "Isabella, we had talked about this."

"Please, tell me. Even a little bit…?"

She purses her lips. "Well… he just had some complications. He doesn't talk about it to me too much."

"Okay… I get it." I speak and shift my eyes back to my plate; however, I already lose my appetite. You know, I'm starting to deem that car accident dream or seeing my Dad dying in front of me would be the most traumatic experience ever.

* * *

><p>Ferb just called me an hour ago. He's about to take his exam for Oxford. From his voice (he's getting a little wordy but he's still keeping the title "Man of Action"), I felt that he's a little nervous. I understand him. Who on the earth wouldn't be edgy about taking the admission exams of one of the most prestigious universities in the world?<p>

"Phin!" I hear Izzy's voice from afar. I look around and I see her, walking towards me while she's carrying her books on her arm.

"Heyya, Izzy!" I greet her. "Wanna help you with that?"

"Yeah, thanks." She hands me her books and we walk inside the campus. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just waiting for you, of course. It's my habit, remember?" I grin.

"You know, you didn't change a lot, even a long time." She tells me.

"Why? Because everybody changed drastically in the past four years, should I change too?"

"You're trying to say that, changing to a new person is bad?"

"Not really. I know change is good but I need the right time." My smile fades a bit but she elbows my arm lightly.

"Hey, don't be sad. I still like your old self. It always makes me happy." She looks away from me but I notice a trace of her blush on her ears. Nonetheless, I ignore it. "Hey, Ferb chat me via FB on my way here. Is he doing well?"

"Well, a little. He's pretty tense about the admission tests."

"I feel that sometimes. The pressure, the stress."

"By the way, where are you gonna study for college?" By the time I speak the word college, her facial expression darkens. "Isabella…?"

"Oh?" She replies. "Sorry, I was thinking of something. Well, uh… I haven't thought of that but I'm planning to take Education."

My eyes widen a bit. "Y-you're going to be a teacher?!"

"You don't have to tell that too loud. What? Is there any problem?"

"Well, uh…" Oh, sheesh. "Nothing. I'm just a little surprised about, you know."

She chuckles. "That's fine."

When we open our lockers (her locker is next to mine), I feel something… bad. I scan around and immediately see this guy, who looks like a gangster. Isabella suddenly goes frozen and her eyes widen quick in panic. He saunters heading for Isabella and gives her a "deathly" glare then he moves his eyes at me.

"Get away, you dork." He pushes me away and I fall down on the floor. There are many students around us. I look back at the guy and he grabs Izzy's shoulder and pins her on the locker.

"You—"

"Hey! Where's my Algebra homework? Sir Fen was looking it to me yesterday." He coldly says as he let go of Isabella. Izzy, because of panic, looks at her locker, looking for something. She gives a piece of paper to him. The guy grins and punches the locker beside Isabella's. And that's mine.

_Is this guy…?_

"Good girl." He chuckles. "Just continue doing this, Garcia-Shapiro. I'm sure you'll be doing just fine."

He starts to walk away, mixing himself with the students around. I rush quickly to Izzy, her breathing stops and her skin turns back bit by bit to normal from white. I hold her shoulders and she looks at me.

"Are you alright?" I ask her calmly.

"Yeah." She squeaks.

"Who is he?! He'll regret that he—"

"Phineas, I'm okay." She interrupts me.

"But—" She puts her finger on my lips.

"No buts, Phineas Flynn." She smiles as her skin finally goes back to its normal color. "And besides, you look like your sister when you stutter."

"Isabella Garcia-Shapiro." I glare at her.

"Just joking." She winks.

I try to act like I didn't know what's happening here. "By the way, who's that guy? I've seen him several times but I never know—"

"Jandro." I knew it.

"Who?" I lie.

"Jandro Ramirez." She repeats.

"Is her bullying you all the time?"

"Bullying? No way! He's very nice to me." She gives me a fake smile. I can't believe this.

"Oh." I only say.

"Come on, slowpoke!" By the time she exclaims that line, I remember the time she beat me when we were kids. "You don't want to be late on Sir Ross' class, do you?"

After 4 hours of discussing some lessons—mainly about Communications, Mother Tongue, and Accounting Fundamentals—we finally rest our heads as we have our recess. Before our Communications and Literature class, I tried to ask Isabella why she didn't go to school yesterday, but every time I try to, she was busy or she was talking to Gretchen and to Ginger.

When Izzy and I get our food, we sit on the bench near the drinking fountain.

"Hey, you haven't said about what happened to you yesterday." I tell her as she munches her muffin.

"Hmmm?" She swallows her muffin before she could reply. "Mom and I just visited Nana yesterday then I submitted my requirements for my admissions test. I'm sorry if I didn't tell you about it."

I wave my hand. "Nah, there's no need to apologize. I understand. At least nothing bad happened, right?"

She smiles. "Yeah, you're right."

While we are eating, we talk about what happened yesterday and I help her with our new lessons. From her bright and wide smile, I know she's having a great time. You know, her smile is kinda infectious so I can't help myself but to smile only.

However, someone is about to break her sweet smile.

"GARCIA-SHAPIRO!" A voice rumbles the whole cafeteria and everybody goes silent. The eerie silence makes my legs shudder.

I look at Isabella and her face turns white again and she bites her lip. I whisper, "We should get out of here, Izzy."

"GARCIA-SHAPIRO, WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU?!" The voice roars again. Even me, I almost jump up from my seat.

_What are you waiting for?! Run away before it's too late!_

…no. I'm not running away. Not this time. I need to protect my best friend. She needs me.

_WHAT?! Are you crazy, Phineas?! That guy is way too strong than you!_

I don't care. Besides, that is not a valid reason to run away and I need to keep my promise!

_You're getting insane, aren't you? Did you see what happened to the locker he punched? He's a death machine, Flynn. He might punch you to death!_

I still don't care. Stop arguing with me and help me think how to deal with this mess!

You_ stop arguing with me. Stop acting like you're her protector; think of yourself and run away!_

I ignore the voice as I glance at Jandro Ramirez. From what Gretchen told me, he has buff arms, tall body, and a scar on his chin. He really looks like a gangster because of his black leather jacket, his ripped jeans, his treacherous eyes, his long and highlighted hair, and his deathly glare. Jandro grins as he rushes towards our table and he grabs Isabella by her hair and my eyes widen in shock.

"The answers in the paper are all WRONG! Are you trying to make your pathetic life miserable? HA?!" Jandro yells then he slaps Izzy's face.

I grit my teeth in anger. I scan around to check if there are teachers or members of faculty but there's no single one of them here in the cafeteria. The other students around us are just watching and mumbling. They have no interest to help Isabella. When I look back at them, I clench my fist as Jandro slaps her again. Isabella, on the other hand, is trying not to show that she's in pain.

"LET HER GO!" I shout after I stand up from my seat. Jandro didn't waste his time to look at me. In annoyance, I throw him my milk carton. As a result, the milk spills all over his face and chest.

He tosses Isabella and he grabs my collar. "You're pretty brave, huh? You must be the newbie. Who are you?!"

I look at him directly to his eyes as my anger flares. I sense a spark of lightning between us. "My name is Phineas Flynn. So, you must be Jandro Ramirez."

"Yes." He grimly answers. "Can I ask why did you throw that carton of milk at me?"

"Because you were hurting my best friend." I smile sardonically.

"Oh, Garcia-Shapiro? She's your best friend?" He laughs maniacally.

"Yes, yes she is. Do you have problems with that, gangster wannabe?"

He snorts. "You know, I like your attitude, punk."

"Oh, thank you. I'm very flattered." I try to be sound sarcastic and serious at the same time. "But sadly, I don't like yours."

I grin then in sudden, he punches my stomach really hard. I was like punched by a man with a metal hand. Consequently, I fly away and smash on another table. I cough blood then somebody steps my hands. I groan in pain and afterwards, I feel that I'm floating. My vision is blurring but I manage to sharpen it back. I immediately see Jandro's face; I attempt to move my hands but I can't.

"Listen up, Phineas Flynn. I am the bad boy here. I am the strongest boy here. No one had dared to fight me back since Garcia-Shapiro almost sliced my face but look at her. Now, she is my slave. Everybody respects me here because I'm the alpha student. Don't you dare make me your enemy, Flynn. Because if that happens… that would be your biggest mistake you would ever make." He drops me down and I cough blood again as I hear fading footsteps. "You're lucky today, Garcia-Shapiro. Thank your protector for that."

Bit by bit, my eyes sharpen and I wipe the blood on my lip. When he finally leaves the cafeteria, Isabella runs towards me. Her face is red due to Jandro's heavy metal hand.

"Phin! Are you okay?" Isabella quickly asks as she puts her hand on my cheek. I wince and my arm twitches a bit in pain when she puts the pressure on my left cheek.

"Ow…" I groan.

"Sorry. Does it hurt too much?"

"A little." As soon as my vision finally comes back to normal, I notice that Izzy's face is still white and she's sweating too much. I can feel that she's breathing heavily. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She replies.

"Good." I stand up. She tries to help me but I refuse it. Hence, I grab her hand and drag her out of cafeteria.

"Phin, wait! You're hurt! We need to go to the clinic. Where are we going?" Isabella asks as she tries to remove my hand.

"We need to talk." I say.

* * *

><p>When we get out of the cafeteria, I still drag her but I'm still uncertain where I am heading to. There are many students around us but I ignore them. My feelings are mixed. I feel so angry, furious, and outraged but not only at Jandro… but also, to Isabella.<p>

"Phineas! Let me go, Phineas! You're hurting me!" She half shouts and I let go of her hand, at the same time I face her, my hands are shaking. "Phin, are you alright? Are you angry?"

"YES!" I shout as she stops herself from holding my hand.

"Why? Is it because of Jandro? Phineas, he's—"

"I'm not only angry at Jandro, I'm angry at you, also!"

"W-why?" She stammers. "Did I do something wrong to you? Then I'm sorry."

"Apologies aren't enough, Isabella."

"What can I do for you?"

My eyes narrow as my voice is getting to sound serious. "Explain yourself, then. Explain to me what happened earlier."

"It's nothing." She sheepishly answers.

"Nothing? So it's nothing that Jandro slapped and hurt you?! Not to mention that you're his slave! Not to mention that he bullies you since I left!" I yell; my voice echoes around the corridor. Everybody is starting to look at us.

"I'm sorry about what happened to you and—" She interrupts herself. "How did you know that?"

"It doesn't matter." I grab her arm tightly. "Isabella, you don't have to hide to hide it from me. Why do you have to lie about him?"

She looks down and she squeaks, "Phineas…"

I shake her arm, holding it tighter. "Why do you have to lie? You can tell about it to me, though."

"Phineas…" She croaks. I look at her and hold her hand. It is so cold and shaking but soft.

"Wait, are you okay?" I ask.

"Phin…" She croaks again and she falls down, her face crashing on my chest.

"Isabella? Isabella!" I shake her shoulders but she's not waking up. "Oh, if you're joking now, stop it!"

I slap her cheeks lightly but she's still not responding. Her skin is getting white and cold. I check her pulse on her wrist and it's starting to fade. "I need to bring her to the clinic right now!"

I carry her—bridal style—and I run as fast I can.

* * *

><p>I groan as I feel the dizzy spell though I haven't opened my eyes. When I finally open them, the light kinda irritates me so I rub them. My breathing pattern is normal and I don't feel lethargic.<p>

"Isabella?" I hear Phin's voice at my left. I look at him and he immediately jumps off from his seat. I attempt to stand up but I feel a shock of pain in my chest and I wince.

"Wait, wait! Just lie down there." I follow him and I lay my head down.

"Where am I?" I ask.

"In the clinic. Nurse went downstairs so I'm here to check you out." He says. "Izzy?"

"Yeah?"

"You're fainting frequently these days. Is there something wrong?"

My panic starts to rise but I try to stay calm and I simply smile at him. "It's nothing. It's just the stress, I think."

He exhales loudly in relief then he sits down. "That's good. I thought you're getting fragile."

"Fragile? That's nonsense." I comment.

"Yeah. You're the best in-shape girl I've ever known." He looks down as I shake off my blush. "I… I'm sorry… about what happened in the gym."

"It's okay."

He looks at me. "But—"

I wave my hand. "Phin, no buts. You're my best friend. I won't be angry at you. And besides, you're right. I should have told you the truth. I shouldn't have lied to you. Now that I mention it, do you still remember 'The Golden Rule'?"

He smiles. "Yeah, I remember that."

"_Don't lie to each other. Share your secrets._" We say in unison and I heave a sigh.

"I'm really sorry."

"Nah, don't say that again because I already forgave you. Just answer one question."

"What is it?"

"Why didn't you tell me about Jandro?" When he mentions his name, my smile fades a bit.

"You really wanna know why, Phin?" He nods. "Well… I just don't want to see you hurt and suffering, like what happened earlier. I can't really take it when someone punches you just because you want to protect me. When we were kids, I want to get away from you but you just always showed up and you were stuck with me, like a metal and a magnet."

"Isabella, don't you remember that I promise that I will protect you?" I didn't respond. "I want to protect you because I want to. That's the thing about promises. You must do it, even though it will hurt you."

"I feel like I'm a nuisance to you. I feel that I'm the anvil of your life." I mumble.

"Izzy, don't say that. You never became a bother to me. I want to protect you for me to make it up for you in the past 4 years. Moreover, I'm doing this because you're of my important persons in my life. I care about you a lot, as your best friend."

_Best friend._ Those words stab my heart.

I look at him and sigh. "Okay, but please… let me do my business, on my own. If I say that I want to deal with my problem alone, you will leave me. Is that clear to you?"

He salutes. "Roger that, boss!"

I laugh. "Wait, how many hours did I pass out?"

"Almost two hours?"

I check my watch. "Uh-oh."

"What?"

"It's 3:15 PM; I need to go!" I stand up and stretch my back as I grab my satchel and get out of the clinic.

"Where and why?" Phineas asks as he follows me. "And, you just passed out, Isabella. You can't just run there so fast, you might faint again."

"I need to go! It's for my scholarship! And, you just mentioned that I'm the best in-shape girl you've ever known. I'm gonna prove that to you. Come on!" I half shout as I run upstairs.

"Hey, wait for me, Izzy!"

* * *

><p>Phin and I arrive in time at the Arts and Crafts room of DHSA. I keep panting and wheezing, mainly because we just run up to 6 floors. However, Phineas surprisingly didn't have any sweat on his face nor did he pant.<p>

"That was a good exercise." He mutters while he stretches his arms.

"You… think…?" I say sarcastically between my breaths.

We enter the room and I immediately see Mrs. Severance near her table, inspecting an abstract painting.

"Hi, Mrs. Severance!" I greet.

"Oh, there you are, Isabella! The great painter of Danville High School Academy, Miss Isabella Garcia-Shapiro." Mrs. Severance exclaims. "And you brought someone. Is he your boyfriend?"

Heat rushes in my cheeks when she says the word boyfriend but I try to stay calm and cool, especially Phin is just beside me.

"No, Ma'am. Actually, it's best friend." I correct her as I feel that my heart is shredded into pieces. "Anyway, Mrs. Severance, he's Phineas. He's my best friend since we were kids. Phin, she's Nadine Severance, the head teacher of Arts and Crafts faculty of DHSA."

"Hi, Mrs. Severance!" Phin greets her as they shake each other's hand.

"Nice meeting you, Phineas. Huh, I remember your Greek namesake. He is a son of Poseidon, a demigod who was given the gift to see the future."

"However," Phineas continues, "he abused the gift so Zeus decided to remove his sense of sight as a punishment."

I feel surprised that Mrs. Severance knows these things since that she is the best Arts and Crafts teacher in the whole Tri-State Area.

"You two must be curious why I know these things. Actually, I really studied World Literature but when I applied for a job here in the Tri-State Area, the other schools didn't hired me because I'm overqualified or they don't have an empty slot for a Literature teacher. Luckily, I'm also an artist—an art prodigy, most of the people I know says—and DHSA haven't got the perfect teacher for the Arts and Crafts so I decided to apply for the job." She smiles then she looks at me. "Anyway, are you ready to do the painting, Isabella?"

"Yep!" I excitingly say. I feel that something good will happen.

"Okay, I'll just call the other students from the lower levels." Mrs. Severance tells me and she leaves the two of us.

"Um, what exactly are you gonna do, Isabella?" Phin asks.

"I'm gonna paint to present to the jury sent by the DHSA Administration. They will give their verdict if I still deserve to have my scholarship or not."

"Scholarship? Why? I thought you have lots of money."

My eyes widen a bit but I manage to reply. "Well, I decided that I should save the money Dad left for us for you know… if emergency strikes unexpectedly. At least, we have our back-up."

"Oh, okay."

_Another lie again._ The money Dad left for us was ran out due to my meds and for my health insurance.

Mrs. Severance walks back to us and before she could speak, two male students enter the room. From their uniforms, they're from the junior high school of DHSA. As the senior students, we have the privilege not to wear uniforms.

"Hello, Ma'am." The tallest student greets and smiles.

"Hello, Vincent. Are you guys ready? We should start—wait, where is Axis?"

"Axis has a severe fever. He wouldn't be here to be model for our painting." Vincent says.

"Oh no!" Mrs. Severance exclaims in panic. "Without Axis, who would be the model of your paintings?"

"Can't we do the painting some other time?" I ask.

"The jury will be here tomorrow. I don't think you could finish the painting before the judging. And, we can't rush art. It takes time to do it perfectly."

"The best and only solution we can do is to find a substitute model, as soon as possible." Vincent declares.

"But who will volunteer to be a model?" Mrs. Severance says. We pause for a while, thinking of some other solutions.

"I can help." I jolt my eyes to Phineas, my mouth is open a bit.

Mrs. Severance's face brightens. "Really?"

I chuckle nervously. "Can you excuse us for a sec?"

They nod as I jerk Phineas away from them and I whisper, "Are you sure, Phineas?"

"Isabella, it's okay. I'll just sit there still and nothing else. It's easy, like building a rollercoaster. Or a haunted house. Or a rainbow-inator." He smiles.

"But—" He puts his finger on my lips and I stop talking.

"As what you've said to me earlier: no buts, Izzy. Lemme help this time." He looks back at Mrs. Severance. "I'll do it, Ma'am!"

I mentally groan and facepalm.

"Really? Oh thanks, Phineas! You're a lifesaver." Mrs. Severance shouts as Phin winks and walks with Vincent and the other student.

"Suit yourself." I mutter in my breath.

As we ready our paint brushes and acrylic paints, Phineas quickly sits down in front of us. He looks excited and enthusiastic but I'm not certain if it's because of the modeling. When we are ready to paint, we are just sitting there, waiting for something to happen first.

"Wait, why aren't you guys painting now? Aren't you ready yet?" He asks and I heave a sigh.

_He is really clueless of what is happening here._

"Dude," Vincent calls him, "you need to take off your clothes."

"Ah, okay." _Three, two, one._ "Wait, WHAT?!"

"We're doing nude painting." Vincent tells him as I try not to snicker.

I look at Phineas, who is blushing deep red and his body stiffens but he exhales. "Oookay."

He stands up and looks at me. I avoid his look because I feel like blushing. I'm really surprised that he's still doing the nude painting modeling. When I get my chance, I glimpse back at him as he removes his belt and unbuttons his pants—_WAIT!_

"NO!" I shout. "Phineas, just take off your top clothes! You don't need to take off _all_ of your clothes."

"Yeah, man." Vincent adds.

"Oh… um… sorry." He puts his belt back on his pants then he removes his tee. He's not that thin at all. He has abs and his biceps… I look away but to be honest… _I should have stared._ Just kidding!

He puts down his clothes on the floor and sits down on the stool. While we are about to start paining, I can't help myself not to flush, or to squeal, or anything that will make me distracted while painting even I'm dying to try to. I look at his face and he suddenly beams and winks at me. I can't control myself so I smile back and winks then I start to paint.

"Maybe this day isn't that bad after all…" I murmur.

* * *

><p><em><strong>So, that's all folks.<strong>_

_**By the way, the collaboration story I was talking in the previous chapter IS NOW DISCONTINUED because of some personal reasons. But I'm making a new big project and I'm sure you'll like it. ;)**_

_**So long!**_

_**(PhinabellaDirectioner's gonna study. Good luck on my quiz tomorrow!)**_


	7. Chapter 6: The Phys Ed Incident

_**Heyya guys. **_

_**I'm sorry for the late update. Been busy for a while. **_

_**I'm not in the mood to talk or ramble so here's Chapter 6 for you. **_

_**(Disclaimer: Seriously.)**_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6 – The Phys Ed Incident<strong>

**_Today is November 17, a typical and ordinary Friday for me. _**

Several months have passed and yet Dr. Jefferson hasn't discovered what kind of illness I have. Still, I'm feeling some dizzy spells, lethargy, and chest pains; however, my blackouts in the past weeks are getting frequent. In addition, I throw up sometimes and it occurs after meals. Luckily Phin hasn't noticed it yet. He still thinks that I'm having some heartburns or it is the effects of stress.

Dr. Jefferson still forbids me to play some high-intensity sports. Just some activities that won't make me stressed.

"Isabella! Don't just sit there; you will be late for the Phys Ed class!" Gretchen shouts at the other side of the girls' locker room as I wear my shirt and jogging pants. She shows up, fully dressed and her hair is tied on a ponytail.

"Yeah, yeah! You go first. I have to fix my hair." I say.

"Okay." She answers and she leaves me here in the room alone.

When I put my clothes in my locker, I tie my hair into a ponytail but I leave my bangs hanging in front of my face and I clip it using my hair clip with a little pink ribbon, then I run out of the room. I hastily run to the Phys Ed area grounds.

"ATTENTION!" Coach Robin roars as he stands up from the benches. We immediately group ourselves—boys and girls—and line up according to our heights. "Listen up, dummies. For this session, we will have our practicum.

"We will play soccer."

My classmates, especially the former Fireside Girls, squeal and shout in excitement. I glance at Phineas but it seems that he didn't react about it nor did he have the excitement to play soccer.

"So get ready!" Coach Robin shouts and the groups disperse, running to the soccer field but I walk towards him.

"Coach?" I call.

"Yes, Isabella?"

"I'm sorry but I can't play the practicum. Doctor's orders." I hand him my excuse slip.

"Again?" He reads it and he heaves a sigh. "Okay. You're excused. For you to pass the practicum, you need to give me 30 curl-ups. Can you do that?"

"Yeah, Coach!" I half shout.

"But you need a partner first." He says as he looks around. I turn at my back and I see Phin going towards us.

"Phineas? What are you doing here? Aren't you gonna play for the boys?" I ask him.

"Nah. I feel kinda sick. Here's my excuse slip, Coach." He gives him his slip and Coach nods.

"Well, you are excused too, Phineas. Wait Phineas, if it's okay with you, can you assist Isabella for her practicum?"

WHAT?! Okay, I don't mean that I don't like that Phin will be my partner but this is too much. I feel that I always give him a hard time. First, he always brings me to the clinic whenever I palpitate or black-out. Second, he helps me in my assignments, reports, and lessons that I don't understand. Third, after what happened with that nude painting—

Oh, speaking of that, while we were doing that, I couldn't concentrate because he kept grinning and his eyes were on me. I felt so awkward that my hands—from my wrists to the tip of my fingers—were shaking while I paint. Two weeks after the verdict of the jury, Mrs. Severance told me what happened. Luckily, my painting was pretty good and the details were well-presented and deeply emphasized, according to the jury so they renewed my scholarship.

And guess what? They said that I will be the representative of DHSA for the Tri-State Area Open Exhibit of the Different Arts and Crafts, in the seniors division. My gosh, I will compete with the best artists of the Tri-State Area from different schools for the first place. The first placer will be given a trophy, a plaque, and a slot for the upcoming Regional Artists Competition. That would be a great opportunity for me!

When I told Mom about this, she jumped in joy.

_"Oh, mija! I'm so proud of you! Wait there, I will bake you your favorite custard pie! Let's celebrate!"_ I'm glad that Mom was happy for me at that time. At least, I removed her from her worries.

The next day, when Phin heard what the jury commented about my painting, he went a little… _conceited_.

_"Of course, it is pretty good! You got the manliest model here, right?"_ He exclaimed and I laughed pretty hard. His sense of humor hasn't been disappeared since then.

But he said something that made my inner self squeal and flush in joy. _"But… I know you'll do a great job. I believe that you could do it. I believe in you. We got the best artist here in Danville. Or the best artist in the world!"_

Even though it wasn't that romantic, he said that he believes at me. Those words really made my day.

Okay, back to what happened after the painting session. So whenever I have some troubles or problems, he would just appear beside me like a mushroom. I couldn't reject his helping hand because I really need help.

Okay, back to the field.

"Yeah! Sure, Coach!" He exclaims.

"NO!" I contradict. "I'm fine all by myself, Coach. I'm sure that Phineas wants to play soccer with the boys."

"Hmmm, you have a point, Isabella." Coach says.

"No, no, no! It's okay with me, Coach. Really. My body is not in condition. Look." He bends down and removes his rubber shoes. I notice that his left foot is wrapped in bandage. "I got a sprain days ago."

Coach sighs. "I understand. Even though you aren't sick, since you showed great and spectacular performances in the past weeks, maybe I'll give you this day as a rest day for you. Just this time only! I don't want my students think that I show favoritism in some students."

"Thanks, Coach." Phin says and before I could say something, he drags me away from Coach, going to the shaded area of the field.

I avoid his eyes and not to smile because it's not okay that he's helping me for the nth time. I feel bad.

"Hey," he elbows my arm lightly, dragging me back to reality, "are you alright?"

"Yeah." I answer. "How about you? You said that you're not in condition to play."

"Oh...? Well, I kinda… lied. I just wanna help you."

"What?!" I half shout.

"Yeah, I have an injury but it's getting okay. I just wanna help you in your practicum."

"Phineas, I just said that I'm okay by myself. I can handle this. I can manage this."

"No, no, no. Even though you'll say no, I will still help you. Whether you like it or not." He grins.

I mentally groan and I grasp my hands in annoyance. I'm starting to think if Phineas invented an "Isabella-trouble-scanner" to monitor me.

We stop walking then he smiles at me. "If you don't have anything to say, don't tell me that I made an 'Isabella-trouble-scanner' for me to know if you're having problems because you're wrong."

"Did you just read my mind?" I pout then he shakes his head.

"No. I kinda heard what you were muttering. Then you were smiling there like a little girl who got a lot of candies in Trick-or-Treat." I blush a little and he grins then runs away. Argh!

There are two smiles a Phineas Flynn only has. This is the first one: his teasing smile. And I really hate it!

"Come on, slowpoke! You need to have 30 curl-ups!"

I sigh. "Alright!"

I run after him and in seconds, we get there at the shaded area of the grounds. He puts down the soft mat and we sit down for a while then he faces me.

"You ready?" He asks.

"Yeah, you?" I ask.

"Of course!" He exclaims and he smiles.

_Nyah! Don't smile like that! I'm melting!_

Haha, I'm just messing with you, guys. But seriously, I really thought of that. That smile is the second smile of his that I really love a lot: the melting smile. It makes me feel that I'm a lit candle that continuously melting because of the warmth. Like the flame, his smile makes my body enters in a different planet, like an astronaut walking on a planet that is two times the gravity than here in the earth. My heart is thumping loud, my face is getting warmer, and my mouth is starting to dry. That smile always makes me enter in the Phineas-land.

"Phin to Izzy! Are you still there?" He waves his hands in front of my face then he knocks my head.

"Hey!" I put away his hands off my head.

"What?"

"Are you ready or not? We don't have eternity to do your practicum, Izzy."

"O-oh? Y-yeah." I stammer and lie down on the mat then I position my legs.

Phineas holds my legs and knees and I feel that my heart is in my throat now. Then I put my hands on the back of my head and I start the exercise. As I'm done with the first 10 curl-ups and I consume almost 30 minutes, I feel my heart is still punching my ribs but it is so painful. I want to throw up. I can't feel my body.

_Not now!_

I try everything to ignore the pain I'm having especially because I don't want Phineas feel worried about me. Much worse, I don't want to give him a hint that I'm having an illness that I don't even know what it is.

But I can't.

I really can't.

_I can't take this much anymore!_

I quickly stand up and rush to the washroom. Sluggishly, my pace is getting slower and an eerie sound takes over my head. In every step I take, I sense that the surrounding around me is spinning. My chest is getting heavier than before. I want to vomit right now but I persuade my body to keep walking. There are many voices around me but my ears can't distinct the words.

Finally, I see the girls' washroom. I hastily enter then I vomit on the sink. Fortunately, there are no students inside. I fall down in my knees, the door behind me. I punch my chest to ease the pain but it still hurts, then an imaginary light bulb appears above my head.

Even though I can't feel my hands, I command them to put them inside my pockets and I grab something. I check it out and I feel a little bit of relief. Good thing that I never remove my smartphone from my pocket. I open it and set it in speed dial. I hope I set Gretchen's number and I hope too she's not busy in the practicum.

One. Two. Three. Four.

"Hello?"

_Thank God. It's Gretchen!_

I force my throat to make a word. "G-Gr-Gretchen… help… e-em-emergency…"

"Isabella?! What's happening?"

"H-he-help… m-me…" I croak.

"Where are you?!" Her voice is filled with hysteria.

"H-he-here… in… the… g-girls' w-washroom… ground… floor…" I wheeze.

"Okay, I'll be there. Just wait for me!" I drop my phone and I throw up to my left. I see traces of blood in my vomit. (Yes, it is disgusting but I can't help it.) I can't control my shaking body now. My breathing pattern changes in every minute. I seriously need a miracle now, or an unexpected or insignificant thing that will help me right now.

Then a loud thump roars behind me. I groan in severe pain and I hear a loud knock on the door.

"Isabella?! Isabella! Are you there?!"

"G-Gr-Gretchen…?" I ask in my raspy voice.

"Are you alright?!" She asks; obviously, her voice is still filled in hysteria then I groan again. "I'm such of a dumdum. Common sense, Gretchen! Okay, just stay calm. What should I do, Isabella?"

"I-I-I… h-have s-some…" I breathe heavily. "…m-medicines… in my… p-pu-pur-purse…"

"O-okay! Just stay there, Isabella! I'll be back!" I hear some footsteps fading then I vomit again. I can't still control my whole body, like my energy has been drained. My vision is starting to blur and disappear bit by bit.

"I-I-I… f-feel… l-like… d-dy-dying…" I mutter in my breath and I hear a loud knock again.

"Isabella! Open the door, I got your purse!" It's Gretchen. I command my left arm to open the door and my whole arm raises itself. My fingers unlock the lock and Gretchen immediately enters in the washroom.

She gasps. "Isabella… what—"

"G-gi-gimme t-that… there's… no… time…" I croak. Right away, she follows my instructions and gives my purse. I hastily open it and I see the beta blockers. By the time I almost reach the medicine, I lose my control on my body. I feel that my body is falling down and I black out.

* * *

><p>I groan in pain as I feel my whole body. I carefully open my eyes and still, my vision is blurred.<p>

"Isabella? Are you okay? Say something!"

"S-s-something…" Finally, my vision goes back to normal. I see Gretchen's face, drenched in sweat. I try to stand up and she helps me to position myself upright.

She sighs in relief as she slumps down beside me. "Good thing I immediately let you consume your med."

I smile. "Thanks for the helping hand."

She crosses her arms. "Now, explain."

"What?"

"Explain to me this, Chief. All of this! What is wrong with you? W-what is this all about? Your face was very white and your skin was cold as ice. You were barely breathing! I can't—" I raise my hand and she stops talking. "Sorry. I was overwhelmed by panic."

I put my hand on my chest and I don't feel any pain. My breathing pattern goes back to its normal state. "I understand but… wait, did you tell Phineas about this?"

"Well… when I was about to enter the girls' locker room, he asked why I'm in a hurry. I said that I had some bathroom issues. He asked me also where you went and I said that you're in the washroom. I could see on his face that he's worried about you."

I exhale in relief. "At least he didn't help me this time."

"Isabella… are you getting… _fragile?_"

I give her a fake smile. "Don't overreact there, FSG. Me, fragile? That is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of."

"But Chief—"

"Gretchen, I'm fine. _Really._" I say to her then I pat her shoulder, comforting her.

"Whatever you say so." She stands up and helps me to get back on my feet. "Come on. I have a game to catch up."

* * *

><p>After half an hour, Isabella, along with Gretchen, returns at the field. I run to them to check if Izzy is okay. I know what you're thinking. I'm really worried about her all the time and of course, I have my reasons. It's because of that gangster wannabe Jandro Ramirez and also, her blackouts are occurring often. Whenever I ask her about it, she always tells me that she was stressed… but my gut feeling knows there's something wrong and she hides that something from me. I hope my gut feeling is wrong. Isabella hiding something from me is… <em>wrong.<em>

"Yo! You okay now?" I ask her and she beams at me.

"Yeah. Sorry for that… bathroom emergency." She says, looking at Gretchen. Gretchen looks at Isabella and Isabella raises her brow then both of them smiles, as if I'm not here in the middle of them.

If Izzy and I know almost all the languages in the whole world, this is the language I will never understand: _the girly language._

"If you guys need me, I'll be playing soccer for my team." Gretchen says and she runs off then I give my eyes back to Izzy.

"I guess it's you and me again, huh?" I wink playfully and she wrinkles her nose.

"Anyways, are you ready to continue our exercise," she says, elbowing my arm, "huh partner?"

"Yes. Yes, I am… partner."

We walk to the shaded area. She hasn't said any word nor has look at me then seconds after, she suddenly stops walking. "What is it?"

She smiles and she points something. "Remember that tree?"

"What tree?" I look at the object she's pointing at and I smile. "Of course. It's our hideout!"

Yes. It _was_ our hideout. We used to sleep there after school whenever our moms are busy with their errands and even during classes (yeah, we learned how to cut classes in our young ages), even though we were forbidden to stay there because only high school students could stay there. When I came back here… that was the first place I visit. It still reminds me of something I never did because of my fears.

"Hey, Phin? Are you okay?"

"H-huh?" I stammer as I look at her. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"You wanna hang out there?"

"S-sure!" I chuckle nervously. "Why not?"

Izzy looks at her suspiciously but then she shrugs it off, making me feel relieved a bit. She rushes to the tree then I breathe deeply and follow her. Good thing she didn't ask for more. When we get there, she stretches her back before we sit down. She folds her legs then I hold it down and she starts the exercise again.

I look back at the soccer field and still, the boys aren't tired even though seventy minutes has passed. Some girls are panting and wheezing but they are really persistent and determined to win this game… mainly because the winning team will receive some additional points for the next practicum.

"I bet the boys will win this game." I grin at Isabella.

"Uh-uh. I'm sure the girls will win." Her lips form a smile that I always know what it means.

"Do you want to bet?" I say.

She stops and leans her back on the trunk. "Whoever loses the bet will treat the winner."

"Sounds good to me." I comment.

"Do we have a deal here?" She offers her hand and I shake it.

"Deal." I look back at the field. "Bring it on, guys!"

"Phineas! Isabella! Where are those two?" I hear Coach Robin's voice from afar.

"Coach! Over here!" I yell and he immediately sees us then he starts to run towards our direction. When he finally arrives, I greet him, "Yo, Coach. Why are you finding us?"

"I'm just checking out. I thought you cut classes since I couldn't find you two. Anyway," he looks at Isabella, "are you finished with those crunches, Isabella?"

She shakes her head. "Not yet. So far, I made 17 crunches already."

"That's good, then. The game will end for about five minutes. You should be already done doing your practicum before the end of the game."

"Okay." Izzy and I say in unison. Before Coach leaves us, I hastily stand up and follow him.

"Coach!" I shout. "Coach, wait up!"

"What is it, Flynn?"

"I just wanna ask what's the current score. Do the boys have a chance of getting those points?"

He chuckles a bit. "I think… they have a fat chance. The current score is 2-1. The boys are good but the girls are really awesome in soccer. I guess your team needs a miracle. It could be an insignificant one."

He runs back to the field while my mouth is hanging open then I walk back to the tree.

"What's the matter?" Isabella asks.

"The girls have the game on their hands." I half mutter.

"So, we know who will be the winner of our bet, right?" She winks at me playfully and sticks her tongue out.

"Oh, shut up." I shove her shoulder lightly and she laughs. "Ugh, stop laughing, Izzy! You know, you should continue your exercise and finish it. Come on."

"You just don't accept that you will lose the bet. Admit it, Phin. I won't laugh." She says as she lies down.

"I have only three—" I show her my three fingers, "three words to say, Isabella Garcia-Shapiro: _expect the unexpected_."

I hold her knees but she didn't reply for a while nor did continue the push-ups. I grasp her right knee and look at her face, "Oh, what's the problem?"

"I… can't."

"What?"

"I can't… finish it. I'm feeling dizzy a bit."

"Again?" I sigh. "Gimme your hand."

"What?"

"I'll help you."

"But—"

"Don't even think about insisting, Izzy. Just be a good girl and give me your hand."

She sighs and eventually, she follows what I said. She gives me her hand then I hold it and I gently pull her just close enough, afterwards I slowly put her down. We continue to do that as she rests her eyes while I watch the game. It seems the boys are getting tired but at least they still keep their score stick to the girls', even though the girls' defense is tough to break.

"Baljeet, block Ginger! Irving, pass that ball to Django! Faster! The clock is ticking!" I hear Buford shouting as he blocks Milly.

As what Buford instructed, Irving passes the ball to Django but Gretchen manages to steal it in a small period of time. Buford hastily runs and he finally snatches the ball and kicks it so hard. Katie, who is the goalkeeper of the girls' team, didn't catch the ball and the boys jump in joy.

"Great job, boys!" Coach Robin roars. "Last one minute to go and the score is tied; 2-2! Last one minute."

I glare at Isabella but she avoids my look—maybe because she thinks that I might tease her— and I continue to pull her then I look back at the game. Obviously, the girls want to win this game but they seem tired and exhausted; however, the boys look like they are really determined to bring home the bacon.

"Django! Irving! Block the lady on three o'clock! Baljeet, get ready!" Buford yells as he receives the ball from Louie then Louie to Luke. By the way, they are twins. Identical twins. I can't distinguish them unless they talk; their voices are really different from one another, so I might be confused of which one is this and which one is that.

"Bro! Catch it!" Luke roars and he kicks the ball back to Louie before Milly steals it from them.

Wait. Maybe you're wondering where the heck Jandro is, aren't you? Well, being a quarterback of the football team, he has some exemptions. So instead of taking this class, he's probably having a training to prepare for the upcoming Inter-High.

As Louie, Luke, Irving, Django, and Buford are trying to sneak from the girls, I notice that no one—as in no one—is blocking Baljeet. Maybe the girls think that he wouldn't be a threat to them.

"Expect the unexpected." I whisper and chuckle.

Finally, Luke manages to pass the ball to Buford and Buford runs until Holly, Gretchen, and Milly block him. Ginger blocks Louie and unfortunately, Luke trips a big rock and falls down before he could move.

"OH, COME ON!" I shout and grip Isabella's hand tighter in frudtration. "WHERE THAT ROCK COME FROM?!"

"15 seconds left!" Coach Robin yells.

"Looks like we will have a tie." Izzy tells me but I ignore her because, it's like each and every second that passes creates a new level of adrenaline rush in my veins, even though I'm not in the actual game.

"Phin? You can stop now." Isabella calls me but I ignore her again, still pulling her up and down and focusing only to the game.

Buford hits the ball to Baljeet and the girls stop for a while for no particular reason. Wait… _I get it._ Yes, I get it! They must have been notice that Baljeet is on the corner of the field—the critical position to score a goal.

"Phineas! Stop it!" I'm unable to stop pulling Isabella. The tense already overwhelmed me as my eyes stay on the game.

"7 seconds left!" Coach Robin shouts. I can feel the anticipation around the field.

"5 seconds left! KICK THE BALL, BALJEET! WE DON'T HAVE MUCH TIME!" Buford yells.

Then, Baljeet suddenly strikes the ball but Katie didn't catch it. Coach blows his whistle, ending the game.

"FINAL SCORE! 2-3!"

_The boys win._

"YES!" I shout in joy but in accident, I yank Isabella's arm causing us to lay down, her on top of me. My eyes are open wide. Our faces are so close that her nose is touching mine yet I can't feel her breath.

We stay in our awkward positions and I sense that my whole body is somehow paralyzed. I can't move a single muscle nor can think what to do. A weird rush flowing in my veins makes my heart to pound hard but… is it weird that Isabella's chest is pounding hard too? She must be feeling uncomfortable with this.

Should I push her away from me?

_Of course, you idiot! Do you want to lose your best friend? I say that you should move and act normal! _The voice in my head speaks. Now that he mentioned it, I feel a little hesitated though I kinda like to be near her like this.

_Tell her, Phineas. Don't you see? It's your chance to say your reason why you came back. Tell it!_ Oh, great. Now I'm hearing two voices at the same time. I don't know which side I should be with.

"Phineas! Isabella! Are you okay?" I move my head to my right and I immediately see Coach Robin running towards us. Isabella stands up and I raise half of my body.

"Yeah, Coach." I say and when I look at Isabella, she nods in reply.

"What happened to you two?"

"Coach," I call him, "it's—"

"My fault." I jerk my eyes to Izzy, interrupting me from talking. I'm about to say something again but she continues to talk. "I was pretty overwhelmed by my excitement so I accidentally tripped but Phineas manages to catch me. I'm so sorry."

Coach gives me a glare for a second and he sighs. "That's okay, Isabella. Did you complete the exercise?"

"Yes, Coach." She says while smiling. "30 push-ups in exact."

"Fantastic. Come on." He says. Isabella offers her hand. Even though I'm hesitant at first, I take her hand and she helps me to stand up then we started walking.

I poke her shoulder and she looks at me. "What is it with you earlier? I called you again and again but you ignored me."

"Sorry, Izzy." I scratch my head.

We stop walking and Coach looks at our classmates. "The winner of the game is the boys. You guys will receive extra credits for the next practicum."

The boys jump in joy and give high fives to each other.

"Don't worry girls." Coach says. "Even though you lost, I won't give you any deductions. You may go to your respective locker rooms. Class dismissed!"

Our classmates start to shake their hands and walk their ways to the locker rooms, except for me and Isabella.

"So that's it?" Izzy says, breaking the silence between us.

"Huh?" I look at her, tilting my head a bit in confusion. "What are you talking—oh, I get it. You're gonna treat me, big time!"

She groans. "Alright, alright. I'll treat ya but not this weekend, I think. I'm going to visit Nana and spend the rest of the weekend with her."

"It's okay. I'm not going to be available this weekend."

"Wait, what? Why?"

"I'm gonna fix my college applications and requirements for Tri-State, Stanford, and Yale, then I'll take the admissions test on Sunday."

"Tri-State? Stanford? Yale?"

I nod. "Then if I pass the exams… I'll apply for the scholarships."

"That's… great!" She comments. "Too bad I won't be here to be your review buddy."

"Nah, I can manage it all by myself."

"Well then… I guess I'll see you on Monday?"

I beam at her. "Yeah."

We start to walk back to the locker rooms and before we part ways, I call her again. "Izzy!"

She stops and turns her head back. "Yeah?"

I smile again. "Stay safe. And don't forget about the treat!"

"Of course, I won't! Do your best on the exams!"

"I will."

* * *

><p><em><strong>I'm gonna go now. I'm very tired to say anything.<strong>_

_**(PhinabellaDirectioner's going out now.)**_


	8. Chapter 7: The Name of This Chapter

_**Heyya. **_

_**So, I'm here again. I guess I missed a lot of things here. **_

_**But don't worry guys. I assure you that I won't leave the FanFiction universe. I'll be gone for a long time because of college stuff, but I won't leave. **_

_**Well then. I supposedly give you the next chapter. Get ready for the feels!**_

_**(Disclaimer: I don't own Phineas and Ferb. I only own my OCs.)**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter 7 – The Name of This Chapter Is Secret<strong>_

**_I sigh as I close the Stanford's website. _**

I should be studying right now for the exams tomorrow but I can't concentrate. My mind is kinda scattered. Whenever I try, I really can't keep my head on focus. So I decided to take a break and check out my Facebook.

I open a new tab and type the FB site. My news feed appears in a second and I check the chat list on the right side of the window and look for Ferb's name.

"I can't find his name." I mutter. "Maybe he's still busy."

I check my notifications and I see one from Candace. I click it and a picture pops up. Candace was holding a card and her 2-year old Amanda was trying to get it from her. I look at the description and it says, "With my little student."

I smile and close the picture.

I rest my hand on the table and in instant I raise my head and begin typing Isabella's name on the search bar. I hit the enter key and her profile appears. I browse her photos and suddenly, I stop scrolling. I click an album and it shows her tagged pictures. I click a picture in random and… in this one, she looked happy when she was receiving her last patch as a Troop leader. I click the next button and the next one shows her 17th birthday. All of our friends were there—the Fireside Girls, Buford, Baljeet, and Ferb—except for me.

A popping sound jerks me back to the reality and I find out that Ferb wants with me.

**_Ferb Fletcher:_****_ Heyya. Wanna talk, bro?_**

**_Phineas Flynn:_****_ Good thing you're online. Can you call me via video-chat?_**

**_Ferb Fletcher:_****_ I'll try. Wait a sec. _**

I exhale as I try again and again to think of something else but… I can't remove her from my mind. Why is my life full of pain…?

_That's okay… Everybody wants to have a life full of happiness, peace, serenity, and relief._

_You're such of a coward, Phineas. Do you think life isn't full of pain? Do you think it's about only happiness and enjoyment? _

_Of course, you idiot! _

_Wrong! As in capital W-R-O-N-G! Those people who find only comfort are called cowards, you brainless moron!_

_You… you heartless idiot! _

Wait, this doesn't make any sense… Who are you guys?

_Don't you get it, idiot? We're the insides of you! I'm your brain! _

_Pardon my little friend here, Phineas. Anyway, I am your heart. And we're here to help you decide. _

Decide for what?

_To tell that little big secret of yours to your best friend, which I won't let happen. I won't let Phineas here to lose her friend!_

_Brain, I know your intention is good but that's not a valid reason to run away from the pain! _

_Hey! People want happiness. Not pain. They don't want to live that kind of life because they are scared. They are scared of losing everything! So, it's good reason!_

_So? Everyone is scared of losing but we can't avoid that! We can't blame anyone. That's the thing about life, brain. It's really full of sadness but still, there's happiness in it! And to get that, you must use that sadness to be strong. _

_Pfft. Strong? That's garbage. What we need is to survive life, heart. We must do everything to have a happy life. _

Can you guys stop this? I hate it when you guys are arguing like this. It's driving me crazy!

_Hey, don't blame me. _My brain says. _Blame that heart of yours. The real problem is that stupid heart of yours doesn't have a good brain like mine. _

_Why me? Blame that dumb brain of yours! The real problem here is that brain doesn't have a heart!_

_Pfft. Why do I need a heart? I don't need one anyway. Do I need one when answering tests? You don't even one in love!_

_You're wrong again, brainiac. You need heart in love. You know, in some circumstances, you must use your brain but when you feel that your brain messed up, you must listen to me. _

_No! _You_ should listen to _me_! Don't tell your secret to her! Do you want to lose her forever?_

I don't want to… but…

_Phineas… you know… you know that she needs you more than anything right now. She needs you to be happy. You're her only one who can make her happy every day. But… do you think if she saw you sad and feeling miserable about that little secret of yours, will she be happy? I don't think so. If you want to tell her your secret, then tell her._

…I can't. If things are just that easy… I would probably do that from the start.

_Phineas, she will know that secret no matter what and no matter how much you hide it because secrets are just temporary. If she will find out about that before you could say it to her, she might be hurt. But… in the end of the day, the choice is still yours. What kind of decision you will make, we will respect it. We're just here inside just to support you. Am I right, brain?_

My brain didn't respond anything. Then a pop budges my attention back to my laptop. In a second, I see Ferb's face—his hair kinda messes up which is unusual for him since he always fixes his hair before we talk.

"Heyya, Ferb! What's with the messy hair?" I ask him.

"Oh, sorry. I'll just get my comb." He stands up and in a jiffy, he's combing his hair. "So, how's Danville right now?"

"It's still the good old Danville."

"That's great! Well, how are you then?"

I chuckle and give him a fake smile. "Me? I'm fine. I still got high grades and I'm also participating in sports."

"Phineas. Don't give me that fake smile." He says coldly.

"W-what? I'm not faking it!" I stammer.

"Hey, you are my brother. I know you for almost my entire life, so hiding would be pointless."

"…it's… look, it's complicated to explain, okay?"

"Complicated, huh? Are you the complicated one? Or Isabella?"

My eyes widen a bit when he mentions her name. "Well… uh…"

"I see… so she _is_ the problem. Why don't you talk about it to her, Phineas?"

"Ferb, everything has changed! Maybe when we were kids, it was so simple to open up things like these but we are adults now! Things get really complicated!"

"Everything will be fine, bro. Just don't over think of it; otherwise, it will be difficult for you to deal with your problem."

"NO! Everything will never be fine. How should I explain this mess to her? How should I explain to her everything?"

" Phineas, you are her best friend. She will understand you."

"Bro, it's not that easy. If she finds out that—"

"Phineas?" Mom cut me off as she barges in my room. "Who are you talking to?"

"Hello, Mom." Ferb greets her.

"Oh, hi sweetie. Are you okay there?"

"Mom? What are you doing here?" I ask.

"I'm just going to tell something to you. By the way, I'm sorry if I didn't knock. The door was open."

I sigh. "It's okay. What are you going to say?"

"Oh, your Dad and I are going to go to the antique shop to check our new customer. While we're off, you're in-charge."

"Okie-dokie." I smile.

"Have fun with your brother. Ferb, call us if you're coming home, okay?"

Ferb gives her a thumbs-up.

"Okay. Bye, boys!"

"Bye, Mom!" Ferb and I say simultaneously as Mom leaves the room.

I exhale deeply. "Whew. That was close. You know, we should use another language. I'm not comfortable in speaking English. Maybe someone might barge in suddenly here."

"Well, suit yourself, bro." Ferb says.

"Ayos na ba 'to?" I ask. (Is this okay?)

"Yup—I mean, oo. Okay na." (Yup—I mean, yes. Yes, it is.)

"Saan na ba tayo? O, paano n'ya ako maiintindihan? Nakita mo ba yung mukha nung nagalit s'ya sa'kin? Kung sasabihin ko sa kanya ang lahat, baka hindi lang ang galit n'ya ang haharapin ko. Pa'no kapag nilayuan n'ya ako? Baka ikamamatay ko yun, Ferb!" (Where are we? Oh, how will she understand me? Did you see her face when she got angry? If I will say to her everything, maybe her anger isn't the only one I need to deal with. What if she went away from me? It will be my death, Ferb!)

"Sabihin mo nga, Phineas. Ano ba talaga ang nararamdaman mo para kay Isabella?" He asks. (Tell me something, Phineas. What do you feel for Isabella?)

**_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
>Only miss the sun when it starts to snow<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

"Anong ibig mong sabihin?" (What do you mean?)

He sighs. "Didiretsuhin na kita. May nararamdaman ka ba kay Isabella?" (I'm going to be straight. Do you feel something for Isabella?)

"Ako? Ferb, hanggang kaibigan ang tingin ko sa kanya." (Me? Ferb, I only treat her as a friend.)

"Sinungaling." (Liar.)

"Hindi! Totoo ang sinasabi ko!" (No! I'm telling the truth!)

"Alam mo sa sarili mo na hindi totoo ang sinasabi mo." (You know from yourself that you're just lying.)

**_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
>Only hate the road when you're missin' home<br>Only know you love her when you let her go  
>And you let her go<em>**

"Ano?" I groan in annoyance. "Sige na nga! May gusto ako sa kanya. 'Yan! Masaya ka na ba?" (What? Okay, alright! I like her. There! Happy?)

"Gusto?" (Like?)

"Oo, gusto ko s'ya." (Yes, I like her.)

"'Yun lang? Niloloko mo ba ako, Phineas?" (That's all? Are you kidding me, Phineas?)

"Ano?" I grit my teeth in anger. "Hindi nga!" (What? No!)

What my brother is trying to say to me?!

He goes silent for a while and looks at me again. "Tama ka. Mali ako." (You're right. I'm wrong.)

"Di ba? Hindi kita niloloko." (See? I'm not lying to you.)

"Oo nga pero… niloloko mo ang sarili mo!" (Yes but… you are lying to yourself!)

**_Staring at the bottom of your glass  
>Hoping one day you'll make a dream last<br>But dreams come slow and they go so fast_**

I find myself in a dumbfounded state. Ferb is trying to say something to me, but what is it…?

"Hindi mo s'ya gusto." He continues; his voice is so cold. "Di ba…?" (You don't like her. Do you?)

"Gusto ko lang s'ya, okay? Ano ba talaga ang gusto mong sabihin sa'kin?" (I just like her, okay? What are you really trying to say to me?)

"Hindi ko pala alam na naiba na ang ibig sabihin ng 'gusto'." He says sarcastically while frowning. "Natatakot ka ba?" (I didn't know that the definition of 'like' was changed. Are you scared?)

**_You see her when you close your eyes  
>Maybe one day you'll understand why<br>Everything you touch surely dies_**

"Ako? Takot? Saan?" (Me? Scared? From what?)

"Sa sarili mo." (From yourself.)

"Ano?" (What?)

"Natatakot ka na din malaman n'ya ang lahat pero ang mas malala, natatakot ka sa sarili mo. Natatakot ka sa nararamdaman ng puso mo." (You're also afraid that she might find out everything but the worse problem, you're afraid of yourself. You're afraid of what your heart is feeling.)

**_But you only need the light when it's burning low  
>Only miss the sun when it starts to snow<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

I look down and close my eyes.

"Subukan mong sabihin na hindi totoo ang sianasabi ko, o susuntukin kita." (If you're going to say what I said isn't true, I'm gonna punch you.)

I heave a sigh. "Totoo." (It's true.)

"Aba—teka, ano?" (Oh—wait, what?)

"Totoo ang lahat ng mga sinabi mo. Takot ako sa sarili ko." (It's true, all you have said. I'm scared of myself.)

"Kaya ba pilit mong niloloko ang sarili mo?" (So you're trying to deceive yourself?)

I nod. "Hindi ko na alam ang gagawin ko… nagtatalo na yung puso at utak ko." (I don't know what to do… my heart and my brain are arguing.)

We stay quiet as the eerie sound of silence fills the whole room.

**_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
>Only hate the road when you're missin' home<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

"Ano ba talaga ang nararamdaman mo kay Isabella, Phineas?" My heart stops beating. My mind goes silent and blank. My breathing pattern changes so fast. "Hindi mo 'yan maitatago nang pang-habangbuhay. Hindi lang sa'kin… pati na rin sa kanya. Kung patatagalin mo ito, yung pagtago mo ng sikreto mo, baka maunahan ka pa ng iba." (What do you really feel towards Isabella, Phineas? You couldn't hide it forever. Not only from me… but also to her. If you're going to continue hiding your secret, somebody might say it to her.)

**_Staring at the ceiling in the dark  
>Same old empty feeling in your heart<br>'Cause love comes slow and it goes so fast_**

"Pero…" (But…)

"Tapos kung malaman n'ya sa iba ang malaking sikreto mo, baka lumalala lang ang sitwasyon." (Then if she heard it others but you, it might worsen the situation.)

"Pero…" (But…)

"Alam mo, parehas na kayo ni Candace." He scratches his head and squint his eyes on me. "Isang tanong, isang sagot. Mahalaga ba si Isabella sa'yo?" (You know, you and Candace are so alike. One question, one answer. Is Isabella important to you?)

I purse my lips. "Oo." (Yeah.)

"Bakit?" (Why?)

I gulp as I sense my mouth is getting dry. "Kasi… kasi… napalapit na s'ya sa'kin. Yung simpleng pagkakaibigan namin… naging espesyal. Bawat segundo na kasama ko s'ya, nagiging importante para sa'kin. Nung umalis ako para mag-aral sa New York… gusting-gusto kong umuwi dito nun, Ferb. Imbis na lumayo ang loob ko sa kanya, mas lalo pa akong napalapit sa kanya." (Because… because… she became close to me. That simple friendship of ours… became special. When I left to study in New York… I really, really, wanted to go home that time, Ferb. Instead of getting rid of my feelings for her, the more I became closer to her.)

**_Well you see her when you fall asleep  
>But never to touch and never to keep<br>'Cause you loved her too much  
>And you dived too deep<em>**

"Hindi ko makuha… ano ba ang gusto mong sabihin?" He asks and I breathe deeply before I spill my biggest secret to my step-brother. (I don't get it… what are you trying to say?)

"Mahal ko s'ya. Mahal ko si Isabella." I look at Ferb and he smiles. "Ano? Aasarin mo ako ngayon dahil alam mo na yung totoo?" (I love her. I love Isabella. What? You're going to tease me now because you know the truth?)

"Alam mo, alam ko na 'yan sa simula pa lang." (You know, I already knew it from the start.)

"Teka, ano?!" (Wait, what?!)

"Alam ko na. Halata kaya." (I knew already. It's obvious.)

"Teka, kung napansin mo, ibig sabihin…?" (Wait, if you noticed, that means…)

"Uy, wag kang mag-alala. Sa totoo lang, ako pa lang ang nakaalam. Sina Buford, Baljeet, at Isabella? Sobrang manhid. Nalaman ko nung umalis ka dyan." (Hey, don't worry. To be honest, I am the only one who knows it. Buford, Baljeet, and Isabella? So dense. I figured it out when you left there.)

**_Well you only need the light when it's burning low  
>Only miss the sun when it starts to snow<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

"Kilalang-kilala mo talaga ako, Ferb." I scratch my head. (You know me really well, Ferb.)

"Kung okay lang sa'yo, may itatanong pa ako." (If it is okay with you, I have something to ask.)

"Sige lang." (Go on.)

"Bakit ka nahulog sa kanya?" (Why did you fall in-love with her?)

I blush a little mad, trying to get down my nervousness. "Alam mo… hindi ko pa rin alam kung bakit. Masyado pang magulo ang utak ko. Pero isang bagay lang ang alm ko at 'yun ay gusto ko s'ya makasama ng matagal. Napakatagal." (You know… I still don't know why. My head is still jumbled. But I know one thing and that thing is I want to be with her for long. So long.)

**_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
>Only hate the road when you're missin' home<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

"Hindi mo dapat sabihin sa'kin 'yan. Ba't hindi mo sabihin 'yan kay Isabella?" (You shouldn't say that to me. Why don't tell that to Isabella?"

"Hindi ko kaya." (I can't.)

"Ano?" (What?)

I purse my lips. "Hindi ko kayang sabihin kasi… ayokong lumayo s'ya sa'kin. Mas gugustuhin ko pang itago 'tong kalokohang 'to kaysa mangyari 'yun." (I can't say it because… I don't want her to get away from me. I prefer to hide this than that happened.)

"Naiintindihan kita. Hindi madaling sabhin na mahal mo ang isang tao nang ganun-ganun lang lalo na kung pagsabi mo nito ay makakaapekto sa pagkakaibigan ninyo pero gaya nga ng sinabi ko, hindi mo rin 'yan maitatago ng matagal. At…" He breathes a little deep before he could talk. "…dapat lang n'ya malaman ito." (I understand you. It's not that easy to say that you love someone especially if telling it could affect to your friendship but what I have said to you, you can't hide it for long. And… she must know this.)

I sigh and shake my head in response. "Hindi ko talaga kaya…" (I really can't take it…)

**_And you let her go  
>And you let her go <em>**

"Phineas, may tiwala ka ba sa kanya?" (Phineas, do you have trust on her?)

"Anong klaseng tanong 'yan?" (What kind of question is that?)

"Sagutin mo na lang!" (Just answer!)

I almost take a minute or two before I could reply to him. "Oo naman." (Yes, of course.)

"Kung meron nga, gaya ng sinabi mo, magtiwala ka sa kanya." (If you have, like what you said, you should trust her.)

He's right. I should trust Isabella on this. I should make it up to her on leaving her alone for four years. And besides, I can't hide this from her forever. I can't run away from her either because it could worsen the situation.

"Ferb…?"

"Yeah?"

**_Will you let her go? _**

"What if… she doesn't feel anything for me…?"

He looks away from me. "Well, you should… um… you should keep your friendship. It might be awkward for the both of you but, it's the best way you can do."

I nod. "I should go to sleep right now."

"Yeah, I might be late for the seminar tomorrow." He smiles. "Okay. I'm gonna hit the hay. Remember what I said, hmmm?"

"Okay. See ya around, bro." Then his face disappears and I sigh and put down my laptop screen afterwards.

I guess I owe you an explanation. _A really long one._

All you heard earlier are true. To sum those things up: I'm in-love with Izzy. I _am_ in-love with my best friend. There. I said it. That's my biggest secret. You think it's a good thing, huh?

Well, it's not… for me. Wait, I know that kinda doesn't make any sense. Of course, it's also a good thing and that's the positive side. She gives me the smiles every time I really need it. She keeps me in company whenever I'm alone even I wanted to be. She inspires me, a lot. She always encourages me to be optimistic. And there are a lot more that I can't mention now.

**_'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low  
>Only miss the sun when it starts to snow<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

I try to reciprocate everything she has done to me. I helped her getting her patches, I comforted her when somebody was bullying her, I accompanied her in times of need, and many more.

Yet I still feel that it's not enough.

Then one time in our middle school days, I started to feel something towards her. It changed me, in a good way. It's just, in every step, in every move, in every heartbeat, I always think of her. It's like… man, it's hard to think of things right now.

However, that something good has also something bad—my fears. It overwhelmed me that it also made me hesitated to ask her out. I'm not that good in these lovey-dovey thingies so I decided to go to New York and spend the rest of my high school life there. In the end, I decided to go back here to find out the answer I haven't answered:

_Why? Why her? Of all the people I could fall in-love with, why Isabella? My very best friend?_

I remember what my friend from my previous school, Kenzo, said to me. _"Phineas Flynn, you need to forget what you feel about her. You need to get rid of her, in your heart and in your mind, before it's too late. Remember this always: sometimes, falling in-love with your best friend is like having a life of a demigod. Tragic. Merciless. Full of misery and pain."_

How should I do that if I don't know how I fall in-love with her? I seriously don't know how or why. Maybe it's because every moment of my childhood life, I was always with her. While I was working out to boost her self-confidence, I was able to know her more. That time, I don't wanna let her go—and I became more afraid of losing her.

Don't I regret that I left her, you ask? I do really regret that I didn't come back. I thought it would be for the best but it turned out that it also affected Isabella to a great extent. As what Gretchen said to me, she was too sad in my absence…

**_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
>Only hate the road when you're missin' home<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

I wanted to go home and be with her again so badly the time I couldn't bear to stay at New York, yet I couldn't face her because I was scared again—that she might forget our friendship and that she might already replace me in her heart. I wondered what happened to her in past days. Her birthdays. Her Christmases. Her Hanukkahs. Her New Year celebrations…

You know, if feeling guilt would kill a person, I'd be a double-dead meat. Or _multi_-dead meat.

I stand up from my chair and reach for a box on my bookcase. I smile as I read the note plastered on the cover:

**_"DON'T TOUCH THIS UNTIL PHINEAS ALREADY MADE HIS DECISION."_**

I open it and before I grab the thing inside it, I glance. The thing is another model of cell phone we made for Candace years ago. Oh, that day… _we_ were close—_so_ close! Unfortunately, I was too pre-occupied that made me freak out and go back to the garage.

I start the phone and I go to the transporter app. I deeply catch my breath before I could tell my destination. "Go to the hideout."

"Hideout located." The phone registers my voice immediately.

My surroundings suddenly change in a split second then I feel the cold breeze of the wind on my skin and the light of the moon on my eyes. I put my hand on the tree trunk and the memories jerk in my brain. I kneel down and start digging the soft mud.

If Izzy hasn't dug this part of our hideout, that means she hasn't visited here since I left, and that means… my darkest secret is still safe.

**_'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low  
>Only miss the sun when it starts to snow<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

"Gotcha. I murmur in my breath as I remove another box from the soil and hastily remove the remaining dirt on it. It's a metal box with a voice recognizer that only registers my voice and Isabella's.

I push a button and a robotic femme voice asks, "Please state your name."

I clear my throat nervously before I could speak. "P-Ph-Phineas Flynn."

"Voice registered." The box promptly says and without further ado, it opens.

I reach a carnation-pink envelope and I carefully open it. The scent of the specialty paper is still retained and as I unfold the paper, I flip the envelope and look at it. It was addressed to Izzy but it was dated four years ago—when I was in New York—but I didn't have the enough courage to give this letter to her.

I wrote this letter two months after I left Danville. At that time, I wanted to forget all about my feelings for her. I know somehow that I'm not the perfect guy for her. She really deserves the best. So instead of sending this to her, I put it in this metal box, went back to Danville using the teleporter app, and buried the box on the hideout.

**_Only know you've been high when you're feeling low  
>Only hate the road when you're missin' home<br>Only know you love her when you let her go_**

I knew at that time—even though it is unintentionally—I hurt my best friend. Even though I don't know the reason why, I can feel it's my fault.

I look at the letter and carefully read it. Emotions are starting to overwhelm me again as I read every single word of my letter. My heart starts to beat and I sense that it is getting heavier with any reason. When I finish reading it, I lean my back on the tree trunk and silently cry.

"Akala ko pa naman maibabaon ko sa limot ang nararamdaman ko…" I whisper. (I thought I could forget what I'm feeling…)

I ran away from my hometown and from my best friend to forget everything I feel about her but I found a question that still unanswerable for me.

But I came back to find the answer… and to confess my biggest secret to her…

_Someday._

**_And you let her go…_**

* * *

><p>I'm done with the MRI and the <em>echocardiogram<em> (an ultrasound scan of the heart that gives "pictures" of it from which the muscle wall thickness can be measured) and we are on our way to Dr. Jefferson's clinic. He said that if we got the results of my tests, he could give me a valid diagnosis.

"Mom," I call her attention and she looks at me, "I'm really nervous about this."

"Why, Isa?" She asks while raising her brow in curiosity.

"I don't know why but I think whatever Dr. Jefferson will say to me, it might change everything."

"Relax, sweetie. You're panicking." Mom pats my back as she gives me her sweet smile.

"Maybe. But, aren't you nervous about it?"

"Not really. A bit worried."

We stop walking as we arrive in front of Dr. Jefferson's clinic. Before I hold the doorknob, Mom puts her hand on my arm getting all of my attention.

"Isabella… if you found out something you don't understand after this… I will explain in detail."

"What? What are you gonna explain to me, Mom?"

Her face darkens. "About your Dad."

She removes her hand and I stop moving for a while. My heart starts to beat faster and my hands are getting sweaty but I manage to open the door and the cold breeze of air conditioner hugs my skin. I shiver in response and Dr. Jefferson walks in from the comfort room.

"Hi, Isabella! It's great to see you." He happily greets me and smiles.

"Hi, Doc. I got the lab results here." I tell him as I hand him a big brown envelope and some papers.

"Good. Now I can give you a clear diagnosis of your illness. Please take a seat while I check these results." Mom closes the door behind us and she sits on the couch while I sit on the chair beside Dr. Jefferson's table. He starts reading the results. "So, how is your health going?"

"Fine… I guess."

He heaves a sigh and I shyly smile. He looks fine and steady but in every minute he spends for reading the results, he begins to sweat heavily and his face starts to go pale too.

"Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro… are these tests results accurate and correct?"

"Yes, doctor. According to facilitators, those results are showing the exact vital signs of Isabella and her heart muscle."

"No any errors…?"

She shakes her head. "Nothing."

I gulp. "What's wrong, Doc?"

"This… this can't be! I thought I was wrong about it but…" He looks down, avoiding my eyes. "Isabella, listen to me, okay?"

I nod. "Okay."

"Your illness is a really rare one. It is a condition in which part of your heart muscle, usually the main pumping chamber of your heart, called the left ventricle, is thicker than normal. The degree and distribution of thickening—called hypertrophy –varies. Hypertrophy mainly happens in the muscle between the right and left ventricles, known as the ventricular septum. In this case, the septum is usually the thickest part of the left ventricle and the—"

"Dr. Jefferson, just please tell me what my illness is!" I shout then I breathe deeply. I hold back my tears as my fears start to overwhelm me. "I'm sorry…"

"Isa…" Mom stands up and soothes my back, comforting me a little bit.

"No. I should be the one to say that, Isabella." Dr. Jefferson gives a dark facial expression. "Your disease is called _hypertrophic cardiomyopathy_. It is a genetic condition, meaning that there is a mutation or a change in one of the genes that was passed on to you from one of your parents.

"Just as you have genes that determine your eye and hair color, you also have genes that determine your heart muscle development and function. This gene defect affects the structure, size and function of your heart muscle."

My eyes widen as my heart starts beating like crazy and in a snail's pace, my breathing pattern changes from slow and calm to freakishly fast. I feel so dizzy and I keep blinking my eyes to lessen the pain I'm feeling.

"Isabella, are you alright?" Mom holds me as I sense my balance is failing but I manage to sit down.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I say then I look back at Dr. Jefferson. "So… these chest pains, palpitations, lethargies, and black outs are its symptoms?"

"Yes. Those are the common symptoms of HCM, but in your case, you're experiencing the symptoms in a degree your medicines can't lessen the effects and, you said that you also threw up?" I nod in response. "That's really a rare occasion but it is one of the symptoms. But…"

"What is it?"

"A small number of people with HCM… experience significant symptoms and… are at risk of sudden death."

Sudden… death…?

"B-but how?" I stutter. "I'm just 17, Dr. Jefferson! How could an illness kill me in a young age…?"

He bites his lips as he avoids my eyes. "I don't really know, Isabella. That's the reason why I became a doctor. I am specialized to research all about _hypertrophic cardiomyopathy_, yet I still can't find its causes.

"The age for when hypertrophy develops in people with the gene varies. The most common time that HCM is visible by echocardiogram is the teenage years. Some adults may develop hypertrophy much later in life, or even not at all, even though they have the HCM gene."

"W-wait! A cure! That's it! Does it have a cure? A surgical operation? Or medicines that will remove this illness?" I ask in my shaking voice.

"I… I'm… I'm really sorry but… there is no cure found for _hypertrophic cardiomyopathy_." I feel that I almost lost my composure. I'm still holding back my tears as I clench my fists. "H-however, there are medicines and surgical procedures that may reduce your symptoms and risk of serious problems associated by your illness."

"So… even though… I take so many surgeries and medicines… I might die… right?" He nods in response.

Why me? Why do I need to deal with this illness…?

"Mom…" I look at her, "can you leave the room for a while…?"

"Isa…"

"Please."

She tries to smile. "Sure, mija. Just call me when you need me, okay?"

I nod and she leaves the room, then I look at Dr. Jefferson. "Can I ask something, Doc?"

"What is it?"

"Well, um… you said that you became a doctor because of my illness. What exactly do you mean by that?"

"Hmmm… I became a doctor because… my mother had that kind of disease before."

"Oh… I'm sorry."

"It's okay. What matters now is you, Isabella. I promise you that I will do everything to delay the effects and to find a cure."

"Doc… can I just die?"

"Isabella, you can't. You can't just give up on your life!"

"But why waste time trying to lengthen your life when you knew that you're dying…?"

He holds my hand and look at me straight. "Listen to me. Don't say that, okay? If you die, a lot of people will be miserable. Your loved ones and your friends will be very sad. Your Mom. Your best friend. Your special someone."

"I don't have a special someone."

"You have. You're blushing."

"Wait, what?" I look at the mirror and yes. I am blushing. "How did I miss that?"

He laughs. "Oh, teenagers."

I sigh in sadness. "He's way too dense to notice it."

"Nah. He will notice it someday. The point is: you have to be strong. It might be really difficult to strive through your illness but at least, you have to try. For those important persons you have."

I look from a far, my mind is jumbled into like puzzle pieces. I'm not pretty certain if I can fight this illness, but Dr. Jefferson is right. I can still try.

_For Mom. _

_And for Phineas. Speaking of him…_

"Doc… regarding my illness, should I tell it my best friend about it?"

He sighs and stands up. "If he's not strong enough to carry that, then don't say it. If I were you, Isabella… you should be fair to him. Before everything gets worse. Nonetheless, it is your choice."

I don't want to see him in pain just because my heart is dying, and yet… I need to be fair to him.

I'm still holding back my tears and I force my lips to smile. "Okay… I'll think about it.

"So, can I have the prescription, Doc?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>So... Phineas loves Isabella... <strong>_

_**Yet he is too scared to tell her.**_

_**Isabella has a incurable disease... **_

_**And she might die anytime.**_

_**Welp. I guess that's it, guys! Tell me your reactions on reviews or you can tweet me on my Twitter account PhinabellaFan29. And can you share this story to your fellow friends and fans? Pretty please? :)**_

_**I'm going to go now.**_

_**(PhinabellaDirectioner's out now. TRA-LA-LA-LA-LA!)**_


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